


Boy with the White Wings

by Batheir



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Albinism, Fluff and Angst, Insecure Keith (Voltron), Insecure Lance (Voltron), Insecurity, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Self-Esteem Issues, Self-harm like actions, Team Bonding, Team as Family, Wing Grooming, Wingfic, Wings
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-03
Updated: 2019-01-04
Packaged: 2019-02-10 07:11:07
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 15
Words: 51,384
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12906810
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Batheir/pseuds/Batheir
Summary: Lance has a condition: his wings are slowly turning white, losing their beautiful pigmentation.  In a world where this is considered ugly and dirty, he struggles with his self-esteem and inner feelings.Keith doesn't know how to take care of his wings. He was never taught and never learned- he's too sensitive and embarrassed to ask somebody to help him.Both struggle to bond with the team- avoiding them until the inevitable happens:Keith finds one of Lance's feathers.





	1. The Start

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! Welcome to my new fic!!! I decided to do a wingfic because I really love the dynamics of it, and stuff. It's just really cool! 
> 
> Comments and Kudos are always appreciated, as is criticism! 
> 
> I don't have any beta readers, so if you see any mistakes that you want me to fix, let me know! 
> 
> Thank you guys!

 

Lance didn’t want to admit it, but it was happening again. His wings.

 He should have known, should have realized with that first white feather that cropped up, a week after he entered space. He had taken it as a fluke- something caused by the stress and excitement of everything, of him becoming a paladin and learning so much about the universe.

 But now it was months later, and more were starting to turn. He could see it creeping up his wings, certain feathers just dabbed in white, others turned completely. There weren’t much, -thank god- just a few littered here and there, but he was still a little alarmed by how quickly they had shown up, practically overnight.

 It had happened to him once before- white feathers appearing, ruining the pretty cherry and chestnut brown colours that he had been born with. It had happened when he was 10, when his down was still fluffy and soft.  It had creeped up the underside of his wings, mottling them, ridding them of their colour. His mother had been horrified-what was happening to her son?! His colour had been fading!

 The doctors  labelled it as a form of albinism, -despite Lance’s lack of symptoms anywhere else- and had ordered all of the turned downy to be plucked. He remembered the sting, the pain flooding through the underside of his wings, and the bareness of them for years until his flight feathers grew in. However, the white was gone, soft cherry all that remained.

 Lance had thought that that was going to be the end of it- something he could put to the past, something to forget about.

 Apparently, he was wrong.

 

* * *

 

 Everybody was born with wings. Bird-like, with feathers, and molting, and all the shee-bang of everything that came with them. Lance knew that there were some people who were born with Bat-like wings, folds of skin replacing the feathers, but he hadn’t actually seen anyone like that himself. It was rare, only showing itself in offspring if both parents had it themselves. Apparently it was mostly found in small groups within Africa, but Lance wasn’t quite sure. He hadn’t payed much attention to genetic studies in high school.

 With the majority of the world’s population having bird-like wings, there were many different types of variations, colours, shapes, sizes; no two wings were exactly alike. But It was very, very rare to see white wings- ones that lacked any colour whatsoever. It didn’t happen naturally- whenever it showed itself, which was rare, it was a genetic mutation. One that stripped pigment. To be honest, it was considered to be very ugly if you had white wings- with nothing to show off, no colour to flash, it was weird.

 While they didn’t exactly teach that in school, (well, the genetic part, they did) he knew very well that that was what other people thought. There was a girl with albino wings in his class, and he could see how she was treated differently. How she was teased, even talked to in a different manner by the teacher. She was the girl that lacked colour, and when Lance had gotten it, the creeping of white up his wings, he knew that he wasn’t that far off from being like her.

 Until everything was plucked and his colour had come back.

 Until he was cured, which evidently, seemed to prove itself false.

 It was back, and he was in space- there was no cure now, other than hiding it from the rest of the team for as long as he could.

 

* * *

 

 

Lance’s wings twitched uncomfortably from underneath him. He had them tightly folded up against his back, despite the pins-and-pricks he felt from keeping them there for so long.

 Everybody, except Keith was in the common room- a room built for relaxation and bonding time, watching a movie. The Paladins, who ultimately couldn’t speak or understand Altean had no clue what was going on with the characters showing themselves on the screen, but everybody enjoyed it anyways.

 Lance could tell that the rest of the team was enjoying the closeness that these movie nights brought to everyone. It was a chance to lazily spread your wings, to have them groomed by someone else, to just be there, with the team. He couldn’t say the same for himself.

 Despite loving them like they were his family, Lance couldn’t relax. He couldn’t spread out his wings, that ached to be stretched and fluttered and used, because he knew about the white that was contaminating them. He knew about the questions, and the judgement that it would bring, the confusion from Coran and Allura because they didn’t have wings and didn’t understand human customs.

 His eyes carefully scanned the room, as Lance pressed himself deeper into the couch, hoping to settle down his restlessness, the twitch of his feathers every time he drew in a breath.

 Everyone else’s wings were perfect, as they should be. Hunk’s, strong and powerful, a warm rich brown that Lance knew were perfect to be wrapped in, and comforted. Shiro’s, large and black, the tips of his flight feathers always brushing against his ankles as he walked. Pidge’s, still soft with a little downy, small yet agile, a mix of cream and burgundy that streaked her wings like rain falling and streaking across a window.

 He could even recall Keith’s- a cool gray, ones that never seemed to smooth down, always in use, always twitching.

 “Hey Hunk, can you help me untangle my feathers?” Pidge’s voice snapped Lance out of his thoughts, as he carefully listened in on the conversation.

 “Sure thing, Pidge, get over here.” Hunk’s voice was warm, as he straightened himself up on the couch, Pidge hopping over to sit in front of him, spreading her wings.

 Lance could see the tangles in her feathers, the downy mixing in with the flight feathers that were finally starting to grow.  Pidge was apparently a late bloomer, like her brother Matt. Lance’s fingers twitched- he wanted to untangle Pidge’s feathers himself, wanted to run them through them, to feel the softness.

 Shiro, apparently, caught on. “Lance, do you want to join in? You can groom my feathers, if you want. Group bonding is good for the team.” He turned his back to Lance, spreading out his wings a little bit. It enticed Lance, as his eyes grew a little wide.

 Grooming another person’s wings was a very intimate thing to do- not necessarily romantic, but it could lead down that road if the two were lovers. No, between teammates, it was a family thing, a bonding thing. Lance used to groom his brothers and sisters all the time, carefully sorting and smoothing down their feathers, applying a warm oil to them every night to make them shine and grow in healthy.

 He missed his family.

 “Lance?” Shiro prompted, snapping him out of his thoughts again. “Do you want to? I can do your wings, too, if you want.”  

 Groom his wings? No, if Shiro groomed his wings, he’d see the white. He’d know about the condition. A wave of panic took over him, and he struggled to keep his emotions under control as his wings fought to flutter from underneath him. Lance swallowed hard.

 “I’d love to Shiro, but y’know, I’m really beat. And I still stink from training earlier, so I’d better just go take a shower and head off to bed.” He managed one of his Lance smiles, shooting finger-guns at him. “Next time you’ll feel the Lance charm through your feathers, just you wait.”

 He got up, shifting his wings, folding them tighter on his back. He gave a small little wave as Shiro nodded at him, a little frown on his face, as he leaned back against the couch. “Okay, well goodnight Lance.”

 “Goodnight Lance,” Hunk called, his eyes still not leaving Pidge’s wings as his fingers worked carefully through them.  She waved at him, eyes closed blissfully.

 Allura gave him a smile, before returning back to the movie, while Coran gave him a hearty pat, and he left.

 Lance couldn’t help but feel a little guilty, as he left the room, seemingly rejecting his team’s advances at getting to bond with him. It wasn’t their fault- he hoped they knew that, but it… he couldn’t show them his wings. Not until he got rid of the white. Not until he fixed them.   


* * *

 

 Lance stepped out of the shower stall, some loose pants wrapped around his hips, his hair and feathers still dripping. He grabbed a towel from a nearby shelf and began to gently pat his wings dry, sucking up the water that was lodged between them. When he finished, they were still damp, but they’d dry the rest of the way overnight.

 With a sigh, he turned to face the mirror in the room- it was large enough for the team to spread their wings in front of it, and still see every feather. It made it easier to groom them and put them back into place.  

 Slowly, he uncurled them, gently stretching them out in front of the mirror, giving them a few flaps to air them out. He could already see that some of the feathers were out of place- bent weird from the water that hit them. And the white. He saw flashes of it, stark on each of his wings. Lance drew in a shaky breath, staring at them, looking at them in disgust at how they stood out so much against the otherwise beautiful colours of his wings.

 Letting out a sigh of defeat, Lance grabbed the bottle of oil that he had left out on the bench beside him- he had found it at a market a month or so ago, and it worked really well on his feathers, almost like what he had back at home.

 Slicking up his hands, he began gently running his hands through his feathers, coating them in the oil, making them shiny and soft. He carefully untangled any feathers that had gotten messed up throughout the day, and straightened out others so they they lay perfectly flat against his wingbone. He worked diligently and silently, quick and careful with his actions until he reached it. The first white feather.

 Lance’s fingers lingered over it, hovering as if it would hurt to touch it. Then his eyes narrowed and a bout of anger went through him- his fingers wrapped around the cursed feather, squishing it, breaking it’s shape before he plucked it.

 Plucking feathers were a part of the grooming process, but it was bad to do it too often, because it made the wing sensitive and it took a while for new feathers to grow back. Obviously Lance had plucked feathers before- ones that were broken, or too damaged to prepare, and of course there was his… downy incident, but it still hurt to pluck out this one. It stung, and it left his skin sensitive, but he felt satisfied.

 His eyes moved to the other white feather, just a few inches from the one he had plucked. He pulled that one out too, dropping it onto the floor next to the first one. Slowly, Lance did this, running his fingers through his feathers, sorting them out and grooming them before plucking out all the whites.

 It took him about an hour, an hour of silence in the shower room plucking and smoothing, but finally he was finished. His wings stung a little, but he felt better. He felt like his wings were clean again- there were no more white feathers. They lay in a little pile beneath him.

 There was a rustle from outside of the room, which startled Lance; he quickly gathered up the feathers and stuffed them in his pocket, before carefully putting on a shirt, not wanting to mess up his wings after a hard hour’s work. Quietly, he slipped out of the room, glad to see that nobody was there, before he walked down the hallway and turned towards his room.

 

* * *

 

 Keith trained. And trained. And trained.

 He knew he was exhausted- the shaking in his arms whenever he raised his sword told him so. But he didn’t want to stop- he wanted to keep going, to keep fighting with all of his might. Because if he stopped, it he stopped training, then he wouldn’t have anything to do. Then he’d be forced to go to the common room, where everyone else was.

 Where everyone else was bonding.

 It wasn’t like Keith hated the thought of bonding with the other Paladins- in fact, he often wished he could, but… it was the process of actually doing it that scared him. He didn’t know how to bond. He didn’t know how to interact with the others, besides from maybe Shiro. He didn’t know how to groom others, (which he knew was what was going on,) or how to run his fingers through their feathers. Hell, he didn’t even know how to groom his own wings!

 It was obvious by the state that they were in. Sure, he knew the basics, like how to pluck the broken ones and how you needed to smooth them out every once in awhile to make your flight easier, but that… that was it. His wings were strong and agile, but they weren’t… shiny like Lance’s, or anyone’s really. They were just his wings. Something that could let him fly.

 He couldn’t even ask anyone for help with his wings, because he was too scared and embarrassed to. What sort of 20 year old doesn’t know how to groom his wings?! And… and having someone touch them for him was like a nightmare. Physical touch… it was a little hard for Keith, especially after spending all that time by himself in the shack.

 Keith had seen Lance’s wings once. Well, more than once actually- a lot of times during training. He wished his were like Lance’s- sleek and well taken care of, always shiny and smooth. He wondered what Lance did to them that made them so much like that- was it a certain type of shampoo? Did you even shampoo your wings?

 He yelled out to stop the simulation, putting his hands on his knees to catch his breath. Damn Lance! Thinking about him and his wings was getting Keith all distracted! He took a shaky breath in, trying to stop himself from thinking about that cherry red, glinting in the light that came down from the rafters above. How they were nearly silent with how well-taken care of they were, the swish of them beating down hardly noticeable.

Keith looked over to his own wings, large and powerful, though he knew they were also agile enough so that he could move quickly. They were gray- cool and dark in colour, thick feathers that lined up across his wingbone. His wings were messy right now- ruffled from hard training and exertion. Some feathers stood up in odd places- unwilling to smooth down no matter how many times Keith flapped his wings to do so.

 With an angry grunt, he pushed himself to stand up straight. He was tired, and done for the night. A shower would probably be the best thing right now. Clutching his bayard, he stalked out of the room, sweat dripping down his neck. 

Keith headed straight for the shower room, about to push through the doors when a rustling sound on the other side of them made him stop.

 

* * *

 

 

Though he hated admitting it, Keith was a little shy. Especially when it came to showering with the others, and his wings. Though nobody else mentioned it, he knew that they all knew about it. It was embarrassing, but at least they respected his personal boundaries, Shiro included.

 But sometimes, things just happened. Of course he wasn’t going to get the shower room all to himself every night- everybody needed to use it, didn’t they? It wasn’t like whoever was in there was purposely trying to humiliate Keith.

 Yet still, he couldn’t bring himself to go through. Not when he knew that somebody was in there, and might see him. It wasn’t even like he had something to hide! He just didn’t like doing it!

 With an agitated sigh, mostly situated at himself, Keith slipped himself away, ducking into a corner to wait until that person came out. It wouldn’t take too long, would it?   
  
Well, he was wrong. Whoever was in there was taking their sweet time doing whatever it was they were doing. He sat against the fall, wings folded against his back, twitching every once in awhile with agitation. Keith just wanted to shower, and sleep! Why couldn’t he just do that?!

 It was his own fault.  

 Keith let his mind wander, leaning his head back against the cool tile- it quickly went to the topic of wings, as per usual. Everybody had pretty great wings, they all worked fine, and everybody was pretty skillful in flying. Even Pidge, who was still learning- not yet mastered the art of it, like the rest of them.

 He thought of her fluffy down, that he remembered having once, before all of his flight feathers grew in. He thought about flying with them, during missions when they were on planets that had enough of an atmosphere to allow them to do so.

He thought about Lance’s wings.

 Keith didn’t really understand why Lance’s wings always came up to him in thought- he and Lance didn’t exactly get along that great -Shiro often had to break up their fights,- but there was something about his wings that intrigued him.

 Maybe it was the fact that he didn’t get to see them all that much- most of the time Lance kept his wings tucked away, curled on his back, under his sweater. It gave them an illusion of mystery that seemed to draw Keith in- and when he did see them, it was mesmerizing.

 Lance’s wings had really nice colours- Keith really liked the warm cherry brown that some of his feathers had, next to chestnut ones that seemed to shimmer in the light. Lance seemed to be an expert at taking care of his wings, (something Keith was really jealous of) but… he never really showed them off. Lance seemed quiet about them, which Keith didn’t really understand. Wings were wings, they were meant to be there, right? Plus with ones like Lance’s, and given Lance’s personality, shouldn’t he be showing them off?

 His head shook slowly, as Keith brushed the hair from out of his eyes. Lance probably had his reasons. Surely there had to be more to him than what he presented to the others? Keith knew that that was true to himself. Or, at least, he hoped it was true.

 Lance had mentioned once that he had a big family. Keith knew that big families groomed each other, so maybe that was the reason? Maybe he just had a lot of practice? The thought of Lance running his fingers through someone else’s feathers made him shiver.

 That might mean Lance… might help him. Maybe? He obviously had to be good at grooming, and Keith obviously needed some help, but he wasn’t too sure how Lance would even react if he did ask. Would he make fun of him? Well. Probably- who wouldn’t? It was kind of pathetic that Keith had so much troubles. But he really did need help.   
  
Maybe… maybe just maybe he’d ask for some help.

 

* * *

 

 

Keith’s wings were starting to hurt. He slowly began to uncurl them, stretching them out to get some of the blood to flow back into them, wincing at the feeling of pins and needles coursing through them. He didn’t realize how close the wall was too him, when he accidentally bumped his wing into it, starting himself, causing a bit of a ruckus.   
  
Face growing red as he quickly curled his wings up again, Keith hoped that whatever person inside of the shower room didn’t hear him. He stayed silent for a couple moments, scared to even breath, before Keith heard the whoosh of the doors opening and closing, frantic footsteps quickly leaving. When he ducked his head out from his hiding spot, hoping to see whoever it was, he was quickly disappointed. They had left too quickly.

 Well, at least he could shower.

Getting to his feet, Keith quickly stabilized himself, before walking forward, entering the room.

 It was empty, and still a little steamy- a comfortable warmth engulfing the room. He continued walking forward, feeling his wings relax from the tense state they had been in. Something, however caught his eye- in the corner, on the ground, underneath the bench lay…

 A white feather.

 White was rare- Keith knew this. Hardly anybody had feathers that were as white as this- completely lacking any pigment. It was stark, almost startling, sitting on the floor of the room, sticking slightly to the tile underneath it.

 Hesitantly, Keith reached over to grab it.

 Who’s feather was this?

  
  



	2. Rivals

Keith examined the feather in between his fingers. It was alarmingly soft- almost as soft as downy, despite it being a flight feather. Obviously, it’s owner had taken good care of it while it had still been on a wing. He rubbed it between his fingers a few more times before gently slipping it into his pant pockets. Why he wanted to keep it, he didn’t know. It just…. There was something inside of him that latched onto it. He wanted to know who it’s owner was. 

The warm, moist air surrounded him, making the air thick. It was still steamy from whoever’s shower, staying in the room. Keith was glad it wasn’t cold as he quietly stepped into one of the shower stalls, slinking out of his clothes, folding them and placing them neatly on the bench nearby, far enough away so that they wouldn’t get wet.

His feathers ruffled, Keith still uncomfortable being so bare and exposed in an unfamiliar bathroom- even if he had been in space and using that shower for months.  He was still used to the barrenness of the desert, living in a space where nobody was around him for miles. Keith could have walked around bare naked back at that desert, and not a living soul would have seen him, save for maybe the occasional lizard or snake passing through. Not that he did that, of course. He shuddered at the thought of a sunburn in some… inopportune places.

As he turned on the water, hopping from foot to foot as it burst out ice-cold water at first, (he had forgotten to adjust it to the right temperature) Keith thought about how lonely he had been back then. He refused to accept his feelings back then, but as he looked back at it, Keith knew he was really fucking lonely, stuck in a shack in the middle of no-where. Well, it made sense when he was first forced to move out there, Shiro had just been pronounced dead, and he had raised hell over it. Everything surrounding his supposed ‘death’ was so suspicious, so… secretive, that there was no way Shiro could have died. Besides, ‘pilot error’ ? Like hell Shiro would have made a mistake like that! Keith’s feathers rose in anger just at the thought of them placing all the blame on Shiro.

Because of all the trouble he had caused, (he may or may not have punched Iverson in the face, calling him a fucking liar, among some other colourful word choices) the Garrison had booted him out onto his ass, a just barely 18 year old orphan with little to no money, and no job. They had essentially made him homeless. Luckily, he had found the shack, and he had rebuilt his motorcycle, and there was food. He survived.

That was when the conspiracies started- Keith needed to find out whatever had happened to Shiro. His only family. His only idea had been aliens, (he had real proof! It had nothing to do with him watching an obscene amount of those alien conspiracy shows as a kid!) and he had stuck to it stubbornly. He wasn’t wrong, now was he?

Keith felt his muscles relax under the hot water, the steam engulfing him. He let the sweat wash away from his body, his toes curl against the tile as he let out a sigh, turning around so that he could let the water hit his back and wings.

His wings. They hurt too- flapped too hard during training, probably worked too much. He could feel that some of his feathers were broken- hanging uncomfortable from his wing like dead weight. He’d have to pluck them. As an afterthought to wing care, he pushed some soap out of the soap dispenser beside him and began to scrub down his body.

Normally, Keith kept his showers short and sweet- for fear of someone else walking in- but he taken a little more time in the shower than usual. It was no bother- nobody else had decided to take a shower, so he was all good. Maybe he was finally warming up to living in the castle.

With his clothes put back on, the white feather still gently lodged in his pant pocket, Keith took the time to look at his wings in the mirror. They went through the slits in the back of his shirt. Almost all human tops had them, slits in the back to allow for the wings to go through. Some were plain, just normal holes, while others could be more decorated, patterned around to draw attention to the wings that started around them. Some, particularly the more feminine ones, even bore lace and jewels. They could get quite extravagant really, though Keith preferred simplicity.  It wasn’t like he had a sense of style, anyways.

The broken feathers on his wings still hung there, awkwardly. They displaced the feathers around them, making Keith uncomfortable and a little bit itchy. He reached out to pluck them, making quick work of it all. Some people said that plucking feathers hurt a great deal, and left the wing sensitive for days after, but to be honest, Keith never felt it. There was that pick of pain at first, yes- like pricking your finger almost- but that was the extent to it.

Maybe he was just different. After all, he wasn’t like a normal person. He couldn’t bond, he didn’t know how to groom. He was a little bit broken; like a toy that nobody wanted, because there was just something…  _  off  _ about it.

He blinked at himself in the mirror, dark eyes staring back at him. Was he that different? Was that why he couldn’t bond with everyone else? Keith saw his mouth twitch into a frown, and he looked away. Probably.

Sighing in defeat, Keith tried to smooth down his wings once more, before patting his hair down into place and leaving.

The halls were blissfully quiet, the night-time simulation taking its place on the castle. He was grateful for the solitude on his way back to his room, not really in the mood to talk to anybody, or to have anybody asking questions on why he didn’t go to the movie night.

That is, until he turned the corner and saw Shiro waiting for him beside his door. By the look of the older man’s face, as Keith approached, he wasn’t happy.

“I asked you to show up, Keith. Just for a little bit to mingle with the others.” His tone was low, steady like a parent scolding a child. Keith hated it. He hated the guilt that it always caused him to have.

“I got caught up in my training. Sorry.” Keith knew his excuse was shitty.

“Bullshit, Keith. You’ve been avoiding the team on purpose. We all need to bond, Keith. As a team, we should be able to form a flock together.  _ A family _ .” 

A flock. That’s what most people called a family unit back on earth- one could be in multiple flocks, and nobody had to be related. Often, friends formed flocks, close knit teams too, and of course family members. Shiro was right about everybody forming a flock on the ship- being closer to each other would allow them to help one another easier, and most of all,  form Voltron quicker. 

But still, the thought of it made Keith almost sick. He never had a flock growing up. He didn’t have family, or friends, or anyone he could trust, besides Shiro! Having one person didn’t count! He didn’t know the rules, or the dynamics; Keith didn’t know anything! 

He looked away, nails biting into the palms of his hands as he clenched his fists. “You know that’s hard for me, Shiro.”

Shiro did know. He knew about Keith’s past.

He heard a sigh coming from his friend, the rustle of feathers as Shiro tightened the wings folded against his back.

“I do know, but Keith… you need to get over those things. I know it’s hard,  _ trust me,  _ but being in a flock is a good thing. You’ll have a support system that’s not just me for once.”

Keith’s nails bit harder into his skin as he struggled to keep a hold of his emotions.

“I don’t. Need. Anybody else, Shiro.” His voice quavered as his words came out in broken parts. Keith glanced back up at Shiro, seeing that his expression had softened.

“You do, Keith… you do. As much as I love being there for you, it can’t just be me. What if something happens to me again? You can’t be alone again, Keith. You can’t.” Shiro’s voice was gentle as he reached out to place his hand on Keith’s shoulder.

Keith shook it off, as he snapped, wings flaring up as his emotions got the best of him. “You’re not going anywhere Shiro! You’re back! You’re the only person I need- I can’t bond with the rest of them!” 

Shiro stepped forward, to hug him. “Sure you can. You just have to talk to them- it’s not like they can run away.” 

Keith pushed Shiro away again, tears springing up into his eyes. “No. I can’t.” His voice was thick as he turned around, a furious scowl etching itself across his face. “Forget it. Maybe I don’t even need anybody. I can manage just fine by myself, fuck off Shiro.” 

He could feel Shiro’s gaze burning holes in the back of his shirt as he left, not even knowing where he was going. Keith just needed to get away. He wanted to find the farthest reach of the stupid castle, and just stay there- away from everybody else.

Keith ran headfirst into something hard- not like a wall, softer than that, but more… springy. Muscle. He looked up, and to his dismay he saw Lance, goo wobbling on the plate that he held, wings flaring out to steady himself. There were bags underneath his eyes.

“Move.” Keith growled, pushing him out of the way. In hindsight, Keith knew he was being a jerk, and that it was his fault, but the thought of Lance seeing him with red-rimmed eyes and tears down his cheeks was  _ not  _ something Keith wanted.

“Wow, you don’t have to be such a dick about it,” Lance muttered, sidestepping as Keith pushed him. “Jeez, you’re in a shitty mood.” 

“Fuck off.” 

That was all Keith said, before he continued down his path, anger and hurt mixing themselves together in his chest. 

* * *

Lance frowned as he watched Keith half walk, half run away. He could see that Keith’s feathers were ruffled- a tell-tale sign that one was distressed in some way. Well, Keith obviously was distressed. Lance couldn’t be certain, but he thought he had seen tears on the boy’s cheeks, red eyes too- had Keith been crying? If so, about what? 

For some reason, Lance had never even pictured Keith crying. He didn’t even think Keith could cry. What had rattled him so much?    


It wasn’t like Lance was judging Keith for crying. Lance cried. He cried a lot actually- mostly in the privacy in his own room, but he cried over his family who probably thought he was dead. He cried over his wings, and the frustration and shame of the white feathers turning up again. He cried over the sheer pressure of having the universe’s fate left in his hands, and the fear of somehow screwing it up. To be honest, Lance was a cry-baby. But that was okay- he needed to let out his emotions in some way, didn’t he? 

But Keith crying was different. It sparked up curiosity and a little bit of worry up in Lance. Keith was probably battling some issues of his own- everybody was, weren’t they? Hunk, from being away from his own family and generally being scared of the situations they were being put in, though ultimately putting on a brave face and getting the job done. Pidge, for losing her father and brother in the same way Shiro had gone missing- knowing that there was a possibility that they were alive somewhere, just as scared as she was. Coran and Allura for losing their whole planet! They were the last of their species! Hell, even Shiro. :ance knew very well that that man had PTSD from all the shit that he had to go through, yet still he was their leader and was fighting for the universe.

Everyone had their own issues, so what was Keith’s?

Of course, Lance would never know. He and Keith weren’t close- they weren’t friends, just barely acquaintances. They fought, and bickered and Lance saw him as his rival, as the dude that always showed him up back at the Garrison and now in space, as a Paladin. Lance didn’t hate Keith, but… he couldn’t say Keith didn’t hate him. He probably did.

How much more would Keith hate Lance when he saw his wings turn completely white? How much would he ridicule him, or use it against him?

Lance shuddered at the thought, as he walked back to his room. He saw Shiro walking away, just catching the tail end of his long, black feathers turning the corner. How much would Shiro judge him? Things were already… kind of weird between the two. Shiro was their leader, but Shiro was also a lot more serious than Lance. He didn’t get that the jokes he made were to build up the team, or keep morale high. He didn’t understand that the jokes were to help keep Lance happy too, while he risked his life out there for thousands of planets he didn’t even know existed until he was whisked into space.

Lance knew he wasn’t regarded as seriously by Shiro  as their leader treated everyone else, but… he wished, he was held up to a little higher standard. Lance had ideas! And he trained! His shooting skills were pretty good, and he was fast and agile with his flying! Lance was trying his best to be helpful to the team, but sometimes he felt they didn’t see him as anything more than a joker, which is why he felt so uncomfortable with them seeing him with white wings.

Once that happened, they would never see him seriously, would they?

He sighed as the door to his room opened and he shrugged his sweater off, carefully pulling his wings out of it. Lance was exhausted. Space, and his whole feather thing and all the stress that came with it was really starting to wear him down- all he wanted was for somebody, preferable his mama, to run their fingers through his feathers while he fell asleep. He just wanted that security again, that blissful feeling. Maybe he just wanted to be gone from space- to be back home, in Cuba, where everybody spoke his mother tongue and where he didn’t have to worry about anything greater than his latest crush on some pretty girl down the street. 

Maybe Lance just wanted to go home.

* * *

 

 

Keith awoke in his bed, hair messed up and his mind still angry from the night before. Things were going to be awkward at breakfast- with him and Shiro having a falling out, he’d have no one to talk to, and he’d have to find a new place to sit…. Maybe he’d just skip breakfast for the time being. 

With a sigh, he peeled his several blankets off of him, (keith always liked to sleep with a lot- both the shack and the castle were alike in that they were cold at night) and lifted his feet out of bed, placing them down onto the floor as he sat up. His wings lazily stretched out in front of him, curling and uncurling, trying to shake the sleep out of them.

He stifled a yawn as he got up, walking over to the small bathroom that was attached to his room, (yet they still couldn’t put a shower in it!) to brush his teeth and wash his face. Specifically to wash the dried tears from his cheeks, that he didn’t bother getting rid of from the night before.

He had yelled at Lance, too. Keith felt a little bad about it, but being around Lance while he was like that had been overwhelming for Keith. They weren’t close, and he was a very private person; it had taken Shiro a long time to pry him open, and he had literally been the only person he had trusted. Years of being in the foster care system and having people betray him had hardened Keith off to the outside world. Besides, Lance was a jerk too. He had called him a dick!

Changing into a different set of clothes, that were shockingly similar to the ones he had on before, (thank you black) Keith patted down his hair once more in the mirror, before taking a quick look at his wings. As rattled and ruffled as ever. His fingers reached over to smooth them down, but it didn’t do much, before Keith ultimately sighed and gave up.

He thought about what Shiro had said to him. About him needing to bond with the team, and become part of their flock. His teeth worried at his lip again, as his wings twitched nervously at the thought. Keith had blown up so much at Shiro over it, but… Shiro knew how sensitive of a spot that was for Keith, and to corner him like that… It made him feel a sense of panic he hadn’t felt before. Shiro had pushed him too far, and he retaliated.

But Keith  _ did  _ need Shiro. He needed him a lot, actually. Having him… disappear from earth like that had broken him- Shiro was Keith’s only brother, his only sense of family, and having that taken away from him had been hard. There wasn’t anything romantic between the two, even though Keith was gay, and Shiro being more pansexual than anything. They were simply brothers, who meant a lot to each other. 

Keith pulled on his jacket, not bothering with fitting his wings through the back. It was too much of a hassle- he’d just be taking it off once he got into the training room and warmed up. It would hide the shabbiness of them too, which was always an added bonus.

The door opened, and he walked out, heading down the hallway a few steps until another body crashed into him.

Keith barely manages to keep his balance, throwing out an arm to steady himself on the wall closest to him. A spark of anger ignited inside of him, as he looked up at the culprit. Lance. His mind immediately went back to the night before, and his fists clenched up.

“Holy shit, can’t you just watch where you’re going for once, Lance!”

The other boy, who seemed dazed and confused up until that moment, snapped up, looking over at Keith. His wings were beginning to flare out with anger. “ _ You _ watch where  _ you’re  _ going! You’re the one that ran into me last night!”

“Yeah, that’s because you were fucking wandering in the middle of the hallway like some idiot! Excuse me for not noticing you when it was dark!”

“Not my problem! Don’t call me an idiot!” Lance’s wings were fully flared now, ruffled and raised in his anger.

“I’ll call you whatever I want t-” Keith’s words cut off as he saw something on Lance’s wing. Something  _ apart _ of Lance’s wing, a feather. It was white. A single one, dotting the inside of Lance’s right wing- hard to catch if you weren’t using a mirror. Just like the one he had found in the bathroom- the one he had set in one of his empty drawers for no apparent reason other than he didn’t want to throw it away.

It was Lance’s feather that he had found. Lance had white feathers.

“What, cat got your tongue? Can’t say anything else because your dumb brain can’t think of any more insults for me? That’s fine, because obviously I’m better than you and you just can’t handle it.” Lance’s words were biting, but Keith took them in stride, fueling him with anger, despite the discovery he just made.

“You’re not better than me! Who works their ass off for this team training with the simulations and bonding with their Lion? Me! What do you do Lance? Make jokes and flirt with the locals? What’s that going to do?!” Keith knew that what he was saying was a low blow. Lance was a big part of the team- he helped a lot.

Lance spluttered, his hands flown up in the air. He drew in a breath, wings trembling. “Well at least the team actually likes being around me! I don’t just gloom and hide myself away, like you do. Your personality is shit, Keith. You don’t even groom your wings because all you think about it work, work, work. You haven’t even made an effort to get to know any of us!” 

Lance’s words cut deep into Keith, and he flinched away, nails digging so deep into his hands that it broke the skin. Lance seemed to notice this- notice how deep his words went, because his expression softened.

Fuck that. Lance could be guilty all he wanted, but Keith was going to get the last word. He stepped forward, opening his mouth to say something, before another voice cut him off.

Shiro.

“Stop, both of you. This is ridiculous.”

He stood at the end of the hallway, arms crossed, looking furious. 

* * *

“It’s disgusting what you two just said to each other.” Another wave of guilt went through Lance, as his wings folded in on each other, laying flat against his back. He looked away from Shiro’s stare, biting his lip.

Keith was quiet too, Lance sneaked a quick glance over to him, and he could see that the boy was shaking, wingtips trembling. There was a glassiness in the other boy’s eyes that made Lance think that he was on the verge of tears. Honestly, Lance hadn’t anticipated for their argument to go that far- all that had happened was that they had crashed into each other again. 

Shiro was right for being furious.

“Obviously you two need to learn how to interact with each other like teammates should- if you can’t even get along when you’re not training, how are we going to form Voltron. Something needs to be fixed.”

Both were silent as they listened, heads bowed like kids being scolded by their parents.

“Since nothing that I’ve done on this ship has helped- the team building, mind melding, all of that, I’m going to do it the old fashioned way.” 

It was true Shiro had tried to fix it before- Keith and Lance naturally just always fought. Bickered, was a more accurate word. But nothing like this.

“You two are going to spend some  _ bonding  _ time together by completing an intelligence mission. We’re going to be nearing a planet called Ulif and you two are going to be sent down there for a day and night gathering information about the locals.”

Lance’s heart jumped in his chest- a day and night with Keith? That couldn’t happen. He’d never survive it. 

“You’ll go down in a transport pod, as to not alert the planet of your status, and wear normal clothes. Their atmosphere will support you. Information. A place to sleep. That’s all up to you guys. I expect you two to figure out and resolve your problems with one another. We can’t have you fighting like this- for the sake of the team, and for the sake of Voltron itself.  _ Fix. It. _ ”

With that, Shiro stalked away, silent and unwilling to hear any of the protests the two of them had. Lance watched in horror.

Being in close proximity with Keith would be a nightmare. He felt his heart quicken in his chest- what it… what if he saw his wings? Lance could feel them tighten up across his back at the thought of it. What if he saw the white? What if his secret got out? Lance could feel himself loose the colour in his face.

When he looked over at Keith, the boy seemed as pale as he was.  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> !! Second Chapter !! 
> 
> I know I made Shiro seem kind of mean in this, but I feel like it's for good reason. He had his own issues and battles too, and feel like in a real life situation nobody's going to be perfect and that Shiro had every right to be upset with Keith and Lance for acting that way. There's a certain point right? I feel like he's just really concerned and tired and trying to do the right thing. I love shiro ok he's my baby 
> 
> SO what did you guys think of this chapter? Did you like it? Is there anything I should change- let me know! Taking criticism is the best way to get better and writing, (other than writing itself lol) I'm down for all of that! You don't even have to be nice about it lol like just straight up roast me I can take it 
> 
> Anyways I love you guys and thank you thank you thank you for all of your support on my first chapter!


	3. A Flash of Blue

Keith was still fuming as he packed his small bag. He wanted the last word. He wanted to drive hurtful words into Lance, just to give him a taste of his own medicine. But, as he continued to pack, Keith began to feel his anger ebb away, morphing into something else, a different emotion.

What Lance had said wasn’t wrong, in fact, everything that had left his mouth was true! Keith didn’t make an effort to get to know the other paladins. He always worked. He didn’t take care of his wings- all sore spots that Lance had pointed out directly and Keith knew this. Shiro knew this- everyone knew about it, but Lance had been the one to state it bluntly to him, in his face, no holds bard or words cushioned like Shiro. Lance was right, and it made Keith think a little differently about things. About himself.

He was still pissed that he had to do the mission with Lance, though.

Interaction and ‘fixing things’ wasn’t really Keith’s thing- he worked on his own, and Shiro was the only one he needed. Work and hard training was what was going to make Keith a good member of the team, not necessarily knowing his teammates like they were his best friend. As long as he could form Voltron with them, what was the problem? They could form a flock without him- he didn’t care about anything like that. Keith didn’t belong in a flock. He belonged on his own.

As he thought about the flock, and the fight that him and Lance had had, he thought about Lance flaring his wings, and seeing the white feather. The one that matched the one he had found on the bathroom floor, stark against the dark tiles. Why did Lance have white feathers? He remembered enough from school to know that they were very rare, and a form of albinism itself. He had seen pictures of pure white wings, the person’s face somehow always cropped out, and remembered how blinding they always seemed, even if they were only in a picture. He wondered what it would look like in real life- if light would bounce off of them, making them dazzle if one stood under the sun. What would Lance look like with white wings?

Keith shook his head. What was he thinking? It didn’t matter if Lance had white wings or brown wings, because he wasn’t going to pay attention to him either way. Still, he found himself drawn to the drawer where he had placed the white feather, and opened it. It lay there, as pristine as ever, (though perhaps a little crinkled from being in his pocket) and Keith reached out to touch it again. It was still soft. With a sigh, he picked it up again, and pocketed it. If it was Lance’s, he didn’t want it. He’d give it back to him when he had the chance during the mission. Or at least, that's what he told himself.

Swinging the bag over his shoulder, Keith took a breath, his wings twitching nervously from behind his back. He was wearing his casual clothes- dark pants and a t-shirt, his red jacket over top. This time he had taken the liberty of pushing his wings through the holes, so that he would have the freedom to fly if he chose to do so on the planet. He had a belt on, where he concealed his bayard- Pidge had installed a device onto it that made it look like a knife. He had thought about bringing his blade, but chose not to, leaving it safe under his pillow.

Keith stepped out of the room, walking down the hallway. He really didn’t want to do this. On his own? The mission would have been fine. He would have been happy to get it done. But with Lance? No way- nothing about it would be good. It was going to be a long two days.

He met Hunk and Pidge on his way out, running into them as they were headed down to the hangar, apparently to give their farewell. He gave them a grim smile, trying to keep his wings from twitching too much.

“So, you and Lance are going, right?” Hunk asked, falling in line with Keith as they walked, Pidge right behind them.

“Yep.” Keith tried his best to keep the bitterness out of his voice, out of respect for Hunk, who was Lance’s best friend, but he knew some had slipped out. After all, he was only human.

Hunk laughed, a little nervous, but genuine, “you don’t like that very much, don’t you?” 

Keith froze. Was this a trick question? Was Hunk just trying to get him to admit that he didn’t like Lance? Make him look like a bad guy- people had done that before back in foster care, his foster parents looking for an excuse to switch him to a new home. He opened his mouth, before closing it, unsure of what to say.

“Oh, we know you don’t like Lance very much, Keith.” Pidge piped up from behind them, her eyes glittering from underneath her glasses. “It’s pretty much common knowledge- you guys fight, like, a lot.”

“Yeah. I didn’t think you’d like this mission very much, especially since Lance moped to me about it before he went to his room to pack.” Hunk, admitted, scratching the back of his head. “He’s my best friend. I love him, but I don’t expect everyone to like him. Though, it would kind of be nice if you guys stopped fighting so much. I don’t know- maybe the mission will be okay? Maybe you guys will come out, like, best buds after it. You never know!”

Keith snorted, feeling a little more at ease now that it seemed like the two weren’t out to get him. They knew about Lance’s and his less than perfect relationship and seemed to accept it.  

“I don’t think we’ll become ‘best buds,’ but... “ The words stuck in Keith’s throat- why was he being so open with these people? Hadn’t he decided he could only trust Shiro? “Yeah. I guess it would be best if we could figure out how to not fight all the time.” There was truth in Keith’s voice- he knew that it would make his life a lot easier. It wasn’t like he had to marry the boy! 

“Well, good luck Keith! I believe in you two.” Hunk patted him on the shoulder as they entered the hangar, Pidge offering her luck as well.

Keith felt a hot gaze on him, and he turned to see Lance glaring at him and Hunk and Pidge. When they went to stand with him, he gave them a glare and a hand gesture towards Keith, Hunk shrugging sheepishly- big brown feathers raising and falling with his shoulders. Pidge just smirked. He was telling them off for talking to Keith. 

Frowning a little, Keith went to go stand by Shiro, who was checking a few things over with Allura and Coran before giving his little ‘speech’ to everybody like he always did before a mission where they actually had time to talk and think before rushing in.

As soon as Keith stopped, Shiro turned around to face him- to face everybody. He gave Keith a pointed stare. 

“So, you two, Keith, Lance,” His head towards the chocolate-haired boy, “like I said before you are going on an information gathering mission. It’s fairly low-risk, but you two are going to be bringing your bayards I see both of you already have them equipped and concealed, good.. I have some translation devices for you,” he handed out two little earpieces that would pick up the languages around them and translate them right to their brain, “and I wish you good luck. A day and a night- we’ll be picking you up around 16:00 castle time,  so make sure to keep an eye on the clock and and listen in on the comms built into your devices. Get as much information about the planet as you can, while keeping your paladin status hidden.”  

There was a glitter in Shiro’s eyes as he turned to face Keith, that made him want to recoil. Solve the problems he had with Lance. That was what this mission was really about- it was highly likely he was going to fail. 

“Play nice. Get the information. Got it?” Shiro was stern, but not unkind- Keith knew that he was really just concerned for the both of them, and that this was the only resolution he could come up with. They had both pushed their leader to the edge.

“Got it.”

* * *

 

 

Lance had plucked again. He could feel the sting of his sensitive skin, even now as he walked towards the transport pods with Keith. They wouldn’t be using their lions for this mission- it would give them away too much. He felt the pull of Blue at the edge of his mind, and let her in, feeling her rumble deep within. She was wishing him good luck, telling him to be safe, to come back in one piece. He sent her back an appreciative feeling, looking over his shoulder to wish her a goodbye. 

The rest of the Paladins stood behind, Hunk waving as they both climbed into the pod. Lance nervously looked over to Keith, wondering how the mission would go. Their fight was pretty nasty; he regretted the things he had said to Keith, regretted seeing some of the light leave from his eyes when he had hit the points that affected him most. 

Yet, it wasn’t as if this mission would solve anything- Lance and Keith, they were rivals, destined to fight throughout it all. It was their thing, even though Lance sometimes wished it wasn’t.

Lance winced as he saw how small the pod was on the inside- just barely big enough to fit two people, minus their wingspan. They’d have to fold in. Actually, Lance didn’t mind folding his wings in, even if it did make them cramp after a while. More white feathers had shown up, even after plucking, and after getting rid of them once again, he was afraid more were going to reappear. Keith couldn’t see them, couldn’t see his weakness, something to use against Lance. He had enough of those as it is, and whatever advantage Keith could manage to get, Lance was sure he would take.

“Scoot over, Keith, I’m driving.” Lance spoke up, plopping himself down next to the brooding teen.

“Excuse me?” Keith looked up at him, his eyes a little dark.

“I’m driving. I’m the best at it.”

Keith scoffed, throwing his head back. “As if! If anyone’s better, it’s me.”

“You’re only good at pulling fancy maneuvers and almost getting yourself killed, Keith.” Lance retorted, putting his hands on his hips. “I can fly it in more gently. People won’t notice us more if we’re not zooming in like we’re on steroids.”  

Keith looked like he was going to say something back, his mouth opening, but a look flashed across his face, and he closed it. Folding his arms, he moved over, grumbling. “Whatever. Just don’t crash it or else Allura will have our heads.”

“I’m not going to crash it!”

“Just drive.”

Lance sat himself down, keeping his wings folded tightly against his back- he didn’t want to bump into anything, especially Keith. Adjusting himself into a comfortable position, he placed his hands on the controls, pressed a few buttons, and they were off, out through the castle doors.

They could see the planet in front of them- large, and full of colours, most of them green. Apparently, from their limited amount of knowledge, it was a grassy planet, mountainous too. There were forests, apparently, but the side they’d be visiting would mostly be open, with mountains surrounding them; that’s where the marketplace, the city was.

Lance and Keith didn’t talk as they flew- a stony silence had taken over the small pod. What were they supposed to talk about? The weather? Keith and Lance were nothing alike, so if it wasn’t anything about the mission, Lance didn’t plan on having any extra chatter. He just wanted to get it done as quick as he could, and then he’d be back on the ship. He’d have his privacy again.

He maneuvered the ship down, gliding it through the atmosphere with ease- he was pleased to see that Keith didn’t have anything to say about it. Following the coordinates put on the screen, Lance quickly landed them on a patch of grass. The ship hummed, and then was silent as he turned it off.

“We’re here.”

“I could tell. You couldn’t have landed us any closer to the city?”

They had landed a couple miles or so out- as to not cause any commotion or suspicion. “No, cause I’m not stupid enough to land where all the aliens we don’t know can see us,” he answered as he unbuckled himself and grabbed his bag, buckling it across his back, and in between his wings. “Unlike some people…” 

“Hey!”

“Not naming any names! Just an observance.”

“Let’s just go.” Keith growled, shoving past him to hop out.

Lance followed suit, muttering under his breath. He was pleasantly surprised when a breeze hit his face- strong, yet sweetly scented. Spotting the city in the distance, he had to hold his breath- even from where they stood, it seemed huge. He could see the towering buildings, the kingdom, with the marketplace surrounding it. Huge mountains stood out in the background, tall and beautiful against the light blue-green sky. The grass beneath his feet felt springy, and it was green, but with blue undertones. It waved in the wind.

“So? Are we going to get going or what?” Keith’s rough voice brought Lance out of his thoughts. He looked over to see the boy standing tall, his gray wings spread out, wind whipping his hair. Lance could almost see the tension in his feathers, so ready to fly, to get real use after being cooped up so long in the castle.

Lance wanted to fly. He wanted to fly so bad- to actually feel the wind under his wings, instead of just stale, stagnant air. He was about to agree, before he remembered why he kept them folded up so much. There was the possibility that another feather had turned white- that Keith would see it, and his secret would be broken. He hesitated.

“I swear to god Lance if you say we have to walk there I’m going to strangle you. I’m flying, regardless of what you think. You can join me, or walk, your choice.” 

Right. Keith would leave him, he had no doubts about that.  Lance bit his lip- he knew that Shiro had instructed that they stay together.

“Of course I’m coming with you. Who the fuck wouldn’t want to fly?”

“You, apparently. Let’s go.”

Keith took off. Powerful, strong; Lance found himself captivated by the sheer strength he seemed to have as he pushed up with his wings, catching the wind.

Lance spread out his wings, forgetting about the white, forgetting about his issues. He flew.

 

* * *

Keith didn’t like how crowded the market place was. He had never liked crowded spaces- never liked too many people in his personal bubble. Even now, with his wings so tightly tucked in, they ached, there was always somebody touching him, bumping into him, nudging against his wings.  

Something that was interesting was that the locals actually had wings too. They were similar to him and Lance in the way that their wings were made out of feathers, and were generally large enough to carry their weight. However, they were much more varied in colour- greens, blues, purples; they were very… bright. Pretty, if Keith really wanted to talk about it. The locals were humanoids, but had more bird like features- beaks, feathers on the top of their heads for hair, coloured skin.

Keith felt like he couldn’t trust them. Couldn’t trust the way their eyes looked when they scanned across him and Lance, beady and bright.

Lance, however seemed to be loving their time down on this planet. He mingled well, weaving his way through the crowds, looking at the different stall shops. He had almost lost it when he found a feather-care shop, complete with whatever oils or shampoos he seemed to like. It had been a waste of time, and they had fought when Keith dragged Lance away. 

However hard Keith thought about it, he just couldn’t seem to find a way where he could get along with Lance. The cuban boy was too talkative, too friendly, too social for Keith to keep up. He could talk to people, get to know them and mingle, while Keith struggled just to form words. Lance always seemed to find the right words to say, while Keith struggled to say anything at all. Lance got along with people, while Keith didn’t, which in turn made them fight. They weren’t suited for each other. They couldn’t be friends, but maybe they could learn to tolerate each other. Maybe they could be teammates.

“Keith. Hey Keith.”

A sharp nudge in his ribs made Keith swing around, feathers rising in a bit of a panic. Lance stood behind him, hands up in the air, an annoyed look on his face.

“Chill. I’m not here to murder you.”

Well, people had snuck up on Keith before. Bad things had happened to him when he let people sneak up on him.

“What do you want? We’re not looking at another stupid stall, we’re supposed to be gathering information, not stupid trinkets that waste money and time.” Keith snapped, tucking his wings back in again, making sure not to smack anybody around him, like last time.

“Fuck off, the stalls were cool! What they were selling  _ was  _ information, genius. I was just saying, there’s a cafe or something over there. We should check it out- maybe we can get something to eat and ask a few questions.”

“We don’t have any money to buy any food, Lance.”

“We can ask them questions. Pretend to be tourists or something- it’s not like asking questions is against the law. I wanna take a rest.”

“Lance-” 

“Rest, Keith, rest! I’ll do the talking! Stop being a dick and come on!” 

Keith bit his tongue, hands curling into fists as he felt another bout of annoyance and anger go through him.  “Fine!” He snapped, throwing up his hands. “Waste our time! Blow our cover! Let’s go- just remember it’s your fault if Shiro gets mad.”

“Yep, yep. I take full responsibility- let’s gooo!”

Keith followed Lance in, looking at the building before he went through the door. It was made out of wood and something that resembled bamboo, intricately designed. He had to admit, it did look cool.

The cafe was empty when they walked in, which was a little surprising given the amount of people outside, but Keith couldn’t help but find himself feeling relieved. He had his space back again.

Lance had gone straight for the person at the counter- an employee, or something. He had dark blue feathers, with a white beak and black eyes that seemed to glitter. Keith felt a shiver go down his spine as it looked at him, eyes scanning. Immediately Keith didn’t like him.

Lance, however didn’t seem to have any problems. He walked about to them, greeting, a wide smile on his face. Keith followed behind him, more slowly, cautious.

“Hi! Your cafe looked really cool, so me and my partner decided to pop in.”

Keith flinched at the word partner.

“We’re travelers! Er. Tourists I guess? We were wondering if you could tell us a bit about this city. Cool places to go, things to do. Oh, and about the locals! We’ve never seen another species with wings before!”

His voice was smooth, friendly, posture relaxed. Keith was a little jealous. 

The worker seemed a little surprised, but after a moment he replied, his voice translating through both of their devices.

“I am the owner of this place, so I thank you for your kind words. It is not every day that I see a species such as yours- wings like ours, so I am honoured to see such friendly faces.” His beak clicked, and his eyes crinkled- Keith wondered if it was a sign of genuity. “I would love to give you such information, but alas, I am still working. However, I would love to point you over to my daughter, in the back. She will happily answer all of your questions; I’m sure she would be pleased to see some new faces. Let me call her.”

The bird-like creature made a strange noise from his beak, and another appeared from behind the door. She was smaller, with soft, light blue feathers. They were laced with pink; her eyes were as black as her father's, honing the same glitter that made Keith so uneasy.

They spoke for a moment or two- the translator not translating, as the conversation wasn’t directed towards him or Lance. It wasn’t as good as the one in their helmets. After a few seconds, she turned towards Keith and Lance, ducking her head before motioning at them to follow her.

“I would love to speak with you two.”

Lance immediately started to follow her, eager to gain information, but Keith wasn’t so sure. He felt uneasy- he felt like something was wrong. When he didn’t follow, Lance turned towards him, annoyance sparking in his eyes. “Come on,  _ Keith.’  _ He tugged at Keith’s sleeve, annoyed, a huff in his voice. 

Keith wanted to spit back, to tell him to forget it, and drag Lance away, but he knew the boy would have a fit if he did that. He didn’t want to have to see Shiro’s disappointed face when he realized that they had just fought the whole time. Sighing, he followed.

She led them to a back room, which was naturally lit. The room itself was made out of wood, cloth hangings on the wall, with a table in the middle of it, pillows surrounding. Lance sat down, Keith hesitantly following him, keeping an eye on everything. If Lance wasn’t going to be on guard, he would.

“So, what’s your name?” Lance asked, as the girl sat down. “What are your people called? I’m afraid we came to this planet without very much information.”

“My name is Yuilla. My people are called Uilfflings.” She answered softly, placing her hands on the table. “You wish to know more about our planet, yes? May I ask a question first? Forgive me, but it’s so rare to see another being with wings such as ours. I am very curious. Are you a human?”

Lance smiled, nodding his head. “Yes, my partner and I are humans.”

There it was again, Lance was calling Keith his partner.

There was a change in the girl’s expression that Keith caught- one of interest, but not the right kind. The kind that was malicious. He had seen it before.

But it was gone within a second- so quick, that Keith was questioning whether or not he had actually seen it.

“Oh my! What a wonder!” The Uilffling sounded happy. “It’s such a blessing to have you two here! Humans are such a distant thing- we have only heard about them in books and such.”

Keith eyed Lance- he saw a slow grin creep across his face. Lance’s flirty grin.

“Oh yeah? Well, I could sign something for you, or give you a feather. It would be my pleasure.”

The Uilffling squealed happily, a clicking coming from her beak. Lance seemed to entice her. Maybe they weren’t malicious- maybe Keith was just being paranoid as usual. He gnawed on his lip as he thought. The uneasy feeling in his stomach wouldn’t go away. Maybe he’d let Lance know; it wouldn’t hurt, right?

* * *

 

“For the last time Keith, we’re not leaving just yet! We’re getting really good information- we can be done with this sooner than we thought! Stop overthinking it!” Lance harshly whispered, annoyance flooding through him.

Keith was being stupid. Stupid and paranoid- these Uilfflings weren’t after them. Why would they? They had no clue they were Paladins- they were simply just interested in them being humans. Besides, he was probably just jealous that Lance was hitting it off with that girl. She seemed to be really into him, which was great! His flirting was finally paying off.

Keith grumbled beside him; Lance could see the way his swings twitched nervously from behind his back. A little bit of guilt went through him; they _ had  _ been there for a long time. Regardless of whether or not the Uilfflings were after them, it would probably be best to leave soon.

“Just let me ask one more question when she gets back, and then we’ll head out.” 

“Whatever. I don’t care anymore.” 

Lance stuck his tongue out at him, before abruptly closing his mouth when the pretty girl came back in.

“I am back! I have brought you some food- father said you might be hungry. Here, here eat, eat!” 

She handed them both a plate and and a drink. It smelled fruity to Lance.

He saw Keith picking at the food, his eyes squinted, suspicious. He knew that Keith was about to tell him not to eat it- he could feel him pinching his thigh as a  warning, but Lance didn’t listen to Keith. He didn’t want to.

Bringing the cup to his lips, his down the drink in a couple of gulps, savoring the cold, slightly-strawberry tasting flavor. When he glanced over, Keith looked infuriated.

“What, I was thirsty….”

Wait. Something was wrong.

Something wasn’t right.

He looked at Yuilla, and saw something strange glittering in her eyes. He looked at Keith.

Lance’s head hit the floor, as his vision faded. He could hear Keith struggled beside him, could feel a hand on his shoulder, before he heard a thump beside him.

“Father~”  A sing-song voice. “I’ve got them!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry I missed last week, guys! I got super busy with everything, trying to sort things out right before the winter break. But! I'm on break now, so I'll have a lot more time to write! I'm hoping I can get a few extra chapters out (; (; 
> 
> So, what's going to happen to Lance and Keith? Mwuahahhahahahahahaha maybe they'll bond 
> 
> I really like all of your comments on my last chapter!!! They were all really great! 
> 
> If you guys have any suggestions or critiques don't hesitate to let me know (:
> 
> Merry Christmas!


	4. Chains

Keith shot up, his wings flared, trembling. Stray feathers sat around him, dark and blending into the floor. There was sweat beading on his forehead, dripping down across his nose. His breaths came in pants. 

“Lance?” The first word that came into his mind. “Lance?!” 

Keith winced, withdrawing. His own voice hurt- his head hurt, it ached it time with his heartbeat. Drawing in a slow breath, Keith opened his eyes again, this time to really take in the surroundings around him.

He was in a cell. Well, that’s what he though, you know, with the whole ‘get hit over the top of the head thing and pass out,’ but the situation got a lot more surreal. He was stuck. In a cell. Right. Swallowing hard, Keith felt like his throat was made out of thorns. Wincing, he rubbed his head, looking around.

Wet, gross stone. They were in a basement of some sorts, well more like a dungeon, but Keith was a little too out of it to make sense of much. There was a lump across the back of his head, and when he brought up his hand to feel it, it came back red and sticky.

“Head wounds always bleed a lot Keith, you know this,” he muttered to himself, taking a deep breath. “You’ll be fine. I have to get out and find Lance or else Shiro will kill me.”

His wings rustled from underneath him, and he folded them up tightly against his back. Where was Lance? Was he okay? He looked around, eyes a little hazy. “Hello?”

He needed to get out of there! Off the stupid fucking planet! He bit his lip, trying to clear his head. Out. He needed to find a way out of the cell. Standing up, He gripped the bars for stability, peering past them. Was that? Feathers?

Keith saw a pile just in front of him, hundreds upon hundreds of feathers filled in boxes, bags, all neatly piled up in front of him. They were white. Suddenly Lance’s feather in Keith’s pockets seemed to pick him, hot against his thigh. Why were there so many white feathers? A sick feel in the pit of his stomach started to form.

“Okay. Now I really need to get out. Fuck Lance, If you’re hurt I’m going to kill you.”

He began to run his hands down the bars, tugging and pulling to try and find a weak spot. He went around the cell, all the way to the back, which was a wall lined with wet, greasy, mossy stones. His hands ran against them, pushing, nails scraping against them, looking, searching for any sign of movement. Weakness. And… and… there! There it was! A tiny sliver of movement, a shift against the rest.

“Yes. Okay. I just- I just have to push it… where the fuck is my helmet? If I could just call the ship…” Their radios had been taken- any way to call the ship gone. Any way to get in contact with Lance. Well, he’d find him soon enough. Hopefully.

He pushed harder with his hands against the stone- it shifted again, moving. 

“Okay. Enough of this, I’m just going to-” The heel of his foot mashed against the stone, pushing it with all his might. It shifted again, and again, stone scraping against stone, before it fell, pieces and bits of the wall following it.

Much to Keith’s displeasure, the rest of the wall held sturdy, not falling down like he had hoped. But… maybe this was good. There was a hole maybe, hopefully, large enough for him to crawl through and he hadn’t made a lot of noise. Maybe things were going to be okay.

Taking a deep breath, he flattened his wings against them back, pulling them in so tight that they trembled.

He put his arms through first, then his head, pulling himself through, grunting with the effort. Wriggling, pushing, scraping- Keith felt his nails breaking against the stone as they scraped.

“Fuck, come on!”

His torso hung there, the last little bit just having to go through, before there would be enough room for his legs to slip through. In any other circumstance the situation would have been amusing, him, hanging there, awkwardly scraping and wiggling. It would have been funny. Lance would have laughed at him.

Lance. 

Keith pulled, tugged one last time, and he finally came free, falling forward, toppling to the ground in a heap of flared out wings and legs and arms.

Letting out a strained breath, Keith righted himself, standing up shakily, flapping his wings a few times before folding them again. They hurt- his feathers hurt. Some of them had been ripped out, he was sure, but that didn’t really matter. He needed to find Lance.

Where was he?

“Lance?” He chanced, yelling out again. If there was somebody there, they would have heard him already.

“Buddy?”

Shit. He’d have to keep looking. Peering around, Keith saw that he was in another room, but it wasn’t closed off- there was an open doorway, and he walked towards it. A hallway- it was dark, but dull lights from up above kept it semi-lit. He went out into the hallway, slowly stepping through it, stopping every few seconds to stand still and listen. There was still nobody, everything was eerily silent.

“Fuck, Lance! Where are you!”

He hit the wall, skin scraping against the stone. He pulled back, hissing. Blood welled up against the tiny scrapes, which just managed to piss Keith off. What the hell! Why had things worked out that way! Why, just why did they have to talk to the two fucking aliens that decided to capture them for god knows what!

The white feathers.

Lance’s white feather. 

Did it have anything to do with that? 

A sickly feeling welled up in the pit of Keith’s stomach. He swallowed hard, trying to keep his eyes aimed forward and mind cleared. Lance. He needed to find Lance.

 

* * *

Lance struggled against the chains. His wrists ached, and his wings flapped out from behind him, flustered and growing tired. He could see from the feathers that had fallen beneath him that his wings were turning more white- they lay stark white against the stone. The greasy, bloody stone. Lance had to struggle hard not to gag as he tried to wiggle out of his handcuffs, pulling against them. They were attached to the wall, which seemed to be pretty sturdy. He had tried kicking them, ramming his body into them- his nails were broken and bloody from the scraping and pushing of him trying to dislodge any stones.

Lance wasn’t getting out.

Tears pricked against his eyes, as he slammed against the wall again, sliding down. He was giving up. Until whoever put him in those stupid fucking handcuffs came back, he was stuck. Alone. His hands bleeding and head fuzzy from whatever he had guzzled down. Keith was right. He was so fucking right, and Lance was _ pissed.   _ Why hadn’t he just listened to him! Keith had been right! He was suspicious, and he was right about it!

Lance hadn’t listened because of the stupid rivalry he forced and because he was still mad at him and weird about what was going on between them. Because he was scared about his wings, and them turning white.

He cursed himself, swearing under his breath. His hands were going numb. Lance;s head pressed against the stone- it was cool against his burning skin. His body was still trying to work off whatever he had ingested.

“Keith…” He muttered, his hair sticking to the back of his neck. “Where the fuck are you? C’mon buddy… I need you to rescue me.” Heh. He never thought he’d be saying that. How much of a fuck up was he? Lance had gotten them in so much of a pickle that he was asking Keith for his help. Keith!

Well. Keith was his partner. For now. For the mission, which was undeniably a bust.

Lance sighed, shutting his eyes. They had failed the mission. He had messed everything up. It was his fault. It was always his fault. Maybe…. Maybe.. If they got out- no, _ once  _ they got out, he had to stay positive- he’d leave the team. They’d be better off without him, and nobody would see his feathers. They could drop him off on some friendly planet and he’d find his way back to earth. He could do it, maybe. Probably.

He had shut his eyes, his head starting to throb from god knows what. Maybe if he just went to sleep he’d wake up and everything would be alright. Normal, no… fucking lions or space or Voltron. He’d be back at home in Cuba and could speak in Spanish with his friends and family and everything would be alright.

Ouch. Whoever was making that stupid noise needed to shut up. He was trying to sleep, jeez!

“Lance! Lance!”

Wait. What? Someone was calling his name? Lance shifted forward, his wings aching from underneath him.

“Fuck! Lance! Please!”

Keith. The air left Lance’s lungs as he lunged forward, trying to go meet him, his teammate. Teammate not rival. They weren’t rivals now, when Keith was the only person who could help him get out.

“Keith..” Lance’s voice was hoarse. He swallowed. “Keith!” It came out louder, more clear.

The footsteps stopped, silent for a moment. “Lance? Did I just hear you?” Did Keith always have that waver in his voice.

“Keith, I’m in here. Please,” Lance wished his lips weren’t so chapped, “help me get out of here.”

“Wait, shit, Lance, it’s really you?” 

“Yes, fuck! Keith get in here!” 

There was a sigh. “Okay. Uh? I’m coming- there’s, there a door. I have to break it down. Are you away from it?” 

Lance bit the inside of his cheek, nodding slowly. “Yes. I’m in here, and, uh I’m not really close. My hands are chained, I can’t move.” 

“Alright, I’m coming in!”

It was quiet for a moment, before Lance heard footsteps and there was a large crack, a bang, and splinters on the floor. Eyes squinted, arms still behind his back, Lance looked forward.   


Keith. He was bloody, had matted hair and broken fingernails, but it was still Keith. He was alive, and going to get Lance out of the chains. Holy shit- he was actually happy to see Keith! Wow. Being imprisoned did things. 

The raven-haired boy started at him, eyes dark. He skimmed over Lance, eyes lingering on his wings. The white. Lance felt his heart quicked as he hastily folded them up, putting them out of sight. He had seen it. He knew. Fuck.

“Okay Lance, I’m going to get you out of those. Just, er, wait. I’m going to find a rock or something to break the chains.” Keith sounded awkward. Right.

Lance watched silently as the other boy stumbled around, looking for a rock, or brick, or something. The back of his neck was red- sticky blood stark against his pale skin. Keith seemed paler than usual.

“Okay, got it.” The boy turned around, facing Lance.

He averted his eyes, looking down at his thighs. Keith didn’t need him staring at him.

“Alright. Lean forward and keep your wings tucked, I guess. I can’t get the cuffs off or anything but I can break the chains so you can walk and stuff. Then we can get out of here.”

“Right… just. Just do it.”

There was a clang. And then another. And another- it was sharp against Lance’s ears, piercing through his head, but he didn’t say anything. Keith was probably hurting too- more than him, at least. 

One,

Two,

Three hits, and then his arms and hands fell, lax against his body. They screamed in relief, stiff as he rolled and moved them, trying to get the feeling back.

“Thanks.” Lance muttered, shifting. The handcuffs and chains were still attached to him, but he was fine. They’d be fine. 

“C’mon Lance, let’s get out of here.”

Keith was quiet. Not snarky or angry, but quiet…

He knew about Lance’s wings.

* * *

 

So he was right about Lance’s wings. They were turning white- the patch on the underside of them showed that well…. It looked so… pure, stark against the rest of his wings, the cherry brown that covered them. It made Keith wonder what Lance would look like with pure white wings- colourless, but beautiful at the same time.

What would he look like?

No. He couldn’t think about now now, now as they were slowly walking down the corridor of wherever the fuck they were, looking for a way out. Now as his head hurt like a bitch and Lance was still in chains, them dangling from his wrists as they walked.

They needed to get out. Away.

“Keith. Do you know where we’re going?”

“No.” 

“We should stop. Your head looks bad.” 

“We can stop when we get out.”

“What if we never get out?”

“Shut up Lance, we’re getting out.”

Keith sighed. His head did hurt, but he’d have to muscle through it. They’d get out and then he’d get medical help. They’d get to the castle and he would be put in the pod and everything would be fine. Hopefully.

They continued to walk, quiet and without incident, which was what made everything so much worse. His mind kept going back to the boxes and bags he saw filled with white feathers, and the feathers on Lance’s wings. Something was up with that- something felt wrong. More wrong than whatever shit they had already gotten themselves in.

Keith continued to walk forward, peeking into all the rooms that they passed, stopping at every draft that he felt.

“Keith.” 

He didn’t answer, moving forward. 

“Keith.”

Another step.

“Keith!”

He snapped, whirling around, “what?!”

“I think…. I think you should look at this.”

“Look at what-” The words left his mouth as he looked into the room Lance was pointing to. 

Piles. Piles upon piles upon piles of white feathers- the room was filled with them. Keith swallowed hard, trying to push down the unease he felt within. Where were they getting all those white feathers? Who was providing them? He snuck another glance over towards Lance, worrying his lip. They needed to get out of there, fast. 

“Keith, I hear something!” 

He froze, standing still, ears straining. There were voices- coming towards them.    
  
“Quick, in here!” He hissed, dragging Lance with him. They hid between two crates, feathers surrounding them. They both held their breath as the footsteps followed them into the room, clicking as they muttered lowly to each other. Keith and Lance were still left with their translation devices- close enough to hear the conversation. 

“We’ll wait until the subject’s wings turn fully, and then we’ll harvest.” It was male- a voice that Keith unfortunately recognized.

“And after?” That bitch, the girl.

“They will grow back and we can continue to harvest.” 

“And what about the other?”    
  
“We’ll keep him around to see if he changes as well.” 

“Ho ho ho, sounds like a good plan, father! So smart! I assume we’ll keep them with the others?” 

“Yes, now come. Let’s go- we’ll pay them a little visit.”

Keith could hardly feel himself breath as he held his breath, eyes focused on the crate in front of them. The Uilflings were talking about them. Him, and Lance…. They wanted to  _ harvest _ them, take their feathers.

Both he and Lance were quiet until they left, until they couldn’t hear the footsteps anymore. Keith let out a shaky breath, turning to look at his partner.

“We have to get out of here, and fast.” 

“There’s others, Keith.” Lance sounded different. His voice was thick- Keith could tell something was wrong.

“We need to  _ go, _ if we stay, something’s going to happen. They’re going to harvest us- you heard them!”

“Keith-”

He turned to look at Lance, eyes determined, scared, worried. Keith’s heart wouldn’t slow down. “No, we’re getting the fuck out of here Lance, before they pluck your feathers and chain us up again. We’re going to go back to the ship and talk to Shiro and Allura, and then we can come back for the others. You hear me? I’m not letting you get captured again- get your feathers plucked away. This mission isn’t over yet.”

“Okay.”

“Lets go, I felt a draft back out in that hall. We can get out.” 

“Right.”

 

* * *

The hatch. They found the hatch that they were thrown through- brought down, Lance was certain about it. They were going to get out, going to go back to the ship, end the stupid fucking nightmare that had been started.

Keith stood next to him, looking up. He looked shocked and drained, there were bags underneath his eyes.

Stepping forward, Lance pushed up on it- it opened, revealing the light from up above. He wasn’t about to fly up there, so he turned to Keith.  “Give me a boost, and then I’ll help you back up. Come on, they’re going to find us soon.” 

Keith nodded, lowering down, weaving his fingers together. “Up you go- let’s get this nightmare over with.

Lance stepped, and was pushed up, his fingers grasping the edge of the boards, pulling himself up. He was in the same room they had eaten in; natural light had never looked so good. He groaned, rolling over, before reaching down to grasp Keith’s hand, pulling up with all his might.

“You’re heavy, buddy, loose some weight or something!” He muttered, grunting with effort.

“Shut up Lance! You’re not all that light yourself, but I didn’t say anything!”

“Whatever.”

Keith pulled himself up the rest of the way, rolling over net to Lance. As an afterthought, he kicked the hatch closed, locking it. “The radios- they’re over there. Call them.”

Lance nodded, spotting them, and reaching forward. His head still felt fuzzy, his skin felt hot. His fingers grasped around the the radio, and he pressed a few buttons- the ones he had memorized.

“Shiro here, what do you two need?”

“You need to get us off of this stupid planet, Shiro, stat. Don’t fight me and Keith over this. Trust us.”

Apparently, their leader had heard the clip in Lance’s voice. He understood. “Copy that. We’ll be over in a couple minutes- your location has been sent out to us. Over.”

Lance set the radio down, sitting up. 

“Let’s get out of this shop before they break the hatch, come on.”

“Right.” Keith looked at him weirdly, eyes wide.    
  
Lance looked down and over towards where the other boy was staring. His wings were more white than ever. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another one down! 
> 
> Shit happened- Lance and Keith might, just might trust each other a little more... maybe. Hopefully. 
> 
> I hope you guys liked it, and happy new years!


	5. Bonding?

Keith looked away, his cheeks burning. Lance had caught him staring- looking at his white wings. His swallowed his spit and forced himself to his feet, looking down at Lance who still had the radio in his hand. Shiro was on the way, that was all that mattered. They were fine. Well, they would be fine just as soon as they left the restaurant and got as far away from it as they could. Looking back down at Lance, purposely staring straight at his face, Keith extended his hand, offering it out to him. 

“We gotta go before those dicks find us again and knock us out again.” 

He pretended not to notice when Lance folded up his wings tight, his lips forming a straight line line across his mouth. 

“Y-yeah, let’s go” His voice wavered a bit, before the boy cleared it and put on a smirk. “I want to get off of this island- the ladies aren’t my type and I want to live to tell the tale about how I, the hero got out of a prison. It really turns the ladies -not weird kidnappy ones- on.” Lance grinned, trying to put of a facade of his old self. Keith was uncomfortable with it, never really noticing how Lance could put on an act until that moment. How long had he been doing it for? “By the way, how’s your head? My mighty sidekick's gotta live too!”

It took Keith a moment to realize he was supposed to answer, pulling Lance up to his feet and carefully checking the room outside the door for anymore bad guys.

“Oh. Uh,” his hand trailed up to touch the wound- it had stopped bleeding, but was still sore to the touch. His neck felt gross with the dried, caked blood covering the back of it. “It’s fine I guess. Kinda hurts, but we’ll be on the ship home soon enough I guess.” He double checked the clearing, and began stepping out into it, sneaking out of the place as quickly as he could, Lance on his tail.

“Home?” 

  
“Yeah, the ship. Home.” 

“It’s not earth though- it can’t be home, can it?” Lance continued questioning, whispering as they slipped out, facing the crowd once again. Keith felt nauseous all over again, and his head wasn’t quite helping. He could barely concentrate on the conversation or argument or whatever Lance was trying to start.

“It’s home for me.” He replied curtly, trying his best to slip through the crowd and not lose his cool. Keith’s wings still hurt too, scrapes on them from trying to wriggle through the jagged hole.

“It can’t be! Home is where your family is!” Why was Lance being so insistent?! Keith could feel his agitation rising, along with something else… uncomfortable, revealing something he felt he shouldn’t.

“Can’t call earth home if it doesn’t have your family. Shiro is my family, Lance.” The words found themselves hard to get out, but Keith forced them anyways.

“...Oh.”

“Yeah.”

Keith sighed, finally pushing past the last wave of crowd, onto the small path that led to outside the city. It was like a breath of fresh air, and it made him a little calmer, less… frantic. He turned to face Lance again, who looked a little awkward, jacket pulled over top of himself. Keith shrugged, feeling a little awkward himself. He normally didn’t answer questions like that- normally wasn’t asked very much. Nobody except for Shiro had talked to him when he was in the Garrison, and he’d been such a troubled child when he was younger that he never stayed in once place long enough to be asked anything about his past, or his former parents. He was always just the issue- the one they had to get rid of. The one kid the system was happy to spit away when he turned 18. 

Shrugging a little awkwardly, he continued to lead the way, further down the path until they were out of sight from all the civilians. The sky was dark already, which made a lot of sense, since he was pretty sure they were locked away for more than a couple of hours. Either way, they had to get back to their ships and wait for the castle to pick them up, which either meant that they had to fly or walk there.

“Which way?” It would be better to let Lance decide- he was more shaken up than Keith. Maybe letting him choose would help him to get back a little control. Well. Hopefully, Keith wasn’t really sure.

“Uh? What do you mean?” Lance questioned, straightening his back a little, eyes alert and wide now that they were alone. 

“Are we flying or walking?” 

“Oh! Uh. Walking. My wings are... “ 

“Sore?”    
  
“Yeah, sore.”    
  
“Okay. Let’s go.” 

They were quiet as they walked- a little faster than usual, due to their circumstances. Both boys wanted to get out of there as soon as possible, which made the decision to walk a little strange, but…. Keith had an inkling of an idea why Lance had chosen to. 

The white feathers. He clearly saw how they were spreading, turning across his wing like snow blanketing over the ground. He remembered the piles and crates upon crates of white feathers back in the prison/dungeon type thing- how much it had freaked Lance out, and how secretive he was being over his wings. Lance didn’t want to show them to Keith, or out to the planet that they were on, where something obviously disgusting was happening to those with white feathers. He was scared. 

Also, Keith’s wings hurt so he wouldn’t complain. A break was much needed; both of them were mentally and physically exhausted- flying would have been a hazard for both of them.  

He just really wanted Shiro to be there waiting for them, when they got back. This weird shit needed to end. 

* * *

“What do you mean you can’t pick us up!” Keith yelled into the radio, just steps away from their ship. “Shiro we were fucking kidnapped and had to escape from a dungeon.  _ A dungeon.  _ What if they find us again?!”

Lance watched helplessly, leaning up against the side of their ship. Keith seemed furious, his wings flaring out as he tried to reason with Shiro. Something said seemed to calm him down a bit, however, as he sighed heavily and began to talk to Shiro in a more civilized tone. Still, it made Lance worried; he wanted to get off the stupid planet as much as Keith did.

He needed time to himself. Time to rest, recuperate and figure out what he was going to do with his wings. Lance wasn’t quite so sure Keith had seen the white, since he hadn’t brought it up at all on their journey back to the ship. No teasing, no taunting, nothing. Though, it could have had been because he had made things so awkward between them two at the start of all of it- Keith had given him some very… personal information.

  
Still, wouldn’t taunting him about his wings be some sort of revenge for what Lance did/ The name calling, the bickering, the fighting… the  _ fight.  _ But Keith was quiet, silent for the rest of their journey. So maybe he didn’t see. Which was good, but it still wasn’t enough to put the anxiety in his stomach to rest… Lance wasn’t sure anything would be enough, aside from all the stupid white feathers going away and never coming back again. God, he didn’t want to see another white thing again- that colour? It had been totally ruined for him. Ruined!

The silence was awkward as Keith hung up, chucking the radio on the ground next to him.

“Any luck?” Lance tried to sound hopeful, but his tone was lacking. He already knew the answer.

“We can't go to them right now because there’s something messed up with the atmosphere- we can only leave during daytime or whatever.” Keith muttered, kicking his toe into the earth.

“What? Is that even a thing? Like scientifically a thing?” Lance scoffed, looking up at the sky. He wasn’t sure, to be honest. 

“I don’t know, all I know is that we’re stuck here on this stupid messed up planet for a night! Who knows if those guys are going to look for us! Shiro and Allura are putting Voltron in danger just because they don’t want to get us!” Keith snapped, his tone harsh, feathers quivering.

Lance shied away, wincing. “Okay, okay. Jeez, it was just a question, Mullet. I want to get off of here as much as you do.” He looked around, nervous. “For the meantime, let’s just get in the ship. I don’t think we can risk flying it to a different location, but wouldn’t it be better if we hid inside? Or something? We could sleep in there together.”

Keith looked at him, deadpanned. “Lance, I’m not going to sleep with you.”

Lance spluttered, hands raising above his head in disbelief. “Well when you put it that way, you make it sound weird! I meant you, me, sleep in the ship on  _ opposite sides   _ for the sake of protection and ease. Jesus.”

“Oh. Well in that case, then… yeah. I guess.” Well, that was easy. 

Keith entered first, stalking into the ship with his arms crossed, Lance following, shutting the door behind them. The ship was small, but after a bit of shuffling around and rearranging, things seemed to work out- only their wing tips were touching, after all. 

He was supposed to sleep, but Lance couldn’t bring himself to. He was too aware of all the noises around him- the rustling of the grass outside, a howl a distance away. His mind was still full of all those images he saw in the dungeon, the feathers he had pressed himself up against while hiding from their captors. Learning about the others, and fearing for himself, for his wings, because they were turning white.

The thoughts whirled around in his mind, and Lance kept tossing and turning, trying to find a comfortable spot and cast them away before Keith sat up and looked at him with a blank look, hair still matted and messy.

“What is your problem?” He sounded tired.

“Nothing!” Lance responded, shifting again.

“Well stop moving- I can’t sleep when you keeping making all that sound!” 

“I can’t help it!”    
  
“You’re going to have to!”    
  
Their voices grew more heated, more like how they bickered while back on the ship and before any of the shit had happened. Lance was going to say something back, before he stopped himself, slumping back against the cool floor. 

“I… my mind is too full. From today. I… I can’t stop thinking about what happened?” His voice was quiet as he talked, fingers playing with his sweater, draped on top of him like a blanket.

“Oh….” 

“It’s just! It was… it was really scary, okay? I can’t sleep because I’m still scared they’re going to come back.”    
  
Keith was silent for a moment, before looking back at Lance, a somewhat knowing look in his eye. “... Yeah. I get it. I’m still scared too- I’m mostly worried about those white feathers we saw and “the others” they talked about. I.. I don’t know what’s going to happen, other than praying to god Shiro can actually find us.” 

Lance swallowed hard, tensing at the mention of the feathers. The white feathers- they served as yet another reminder of what was happening to him, a fear that fueled him most nights. He couldn’t sleep but he needed to change the subject, to anything other than what they were talking about. But he still didn’t want Keith’s voice to stop.

“I’m sorry for what I said!” The words came out blurted, quick and fast, Lance leaning up to stare at Keith. “It was stupid and really shitty of me and I’m sorry. I’m really sorry.” It was like word vomit coming out of his mouth, but sincere. Genuine.

A surprised look came across Keith’s face, but he nodded, lifting his hand to scratch the back of his head. “I… I’m sorry too. I was being an ass and I shouldn’t have said those things either. Shiro was right.” It still hadn’t changed the fact that what Lance had said was true- he didn’t socialize and his wings were a mess.  

“Can we maybe just put it behind us?” 

“Water under the bridge.” 

Another silence took over them, but Lance could tell Keith wasn’t asleep. Both of them were just sitting there, thinking. It wasn’t so bad being with Keith, honestly. He was… he was nice, and the concern he had had for Lance when they were back there had been real- he did actually care for him…. It made Lance think about Keith and how he treated him, left him out most of the time. It hadn’t helped him with being on his own and struggling to socialize with the rest of the Paladins. Lance was a dick, and he knew it, which was why he spoke up again, voice timid and a little cautious.

“Hey Keith…?”

“Yeah?” 

“Er. Do you think- do you think we could try being friends? Like for real, not any of that ‘forced together until they like each other’ bullshit.” 

“What are you? In preschool? When do you have to ask somebody to be friends?”

“Hey! I just thought… it would be easier that way…. I wasn’t lying or anything.”

There was another silence- Lance wondered if Keith was in shock, or if he was just ignoring him. He wouldn’t blame him.

“I’d like that.”

Lance’s head turned around to look at him, the raven-haired boy barely visible in the darkness. His eyebrows were raised in surprise, as his mouth gaped open.

“Really? Like really really? You wanna be friends?” 

“Yeah.” Keith’s voice sounded awkward as he coughed into his sleeve, turning away. “I.. I could use a friend, I guess. Like I said, er, before… I don’t really have anybody except for Shiro.”    
  
“Shit Keith, I’ll be best friend then- after Hunk of course- I’ll friend you so much you’ll be sick of me!”    
  
Keith rolled his eyes; Lance almost missed it because of the darkness. “Like that will be all that hard- I’m already sick of you!” While the words sounded mean, there wasn’t any malicious intent in Keith’s voice. He sounded amused, and… a little touched. Maybe. Either way- Lance was going to try his best. His best to make up for being a shitty person, for saying those things to him because he was in the same boat- he had issues too. 

Because people needed more than just one person in their life. 

 

* * *

“I have never been more happy in my life to get a call from Shiro. No offense, but he kind of hates me.” Lance spoke out loud, making Keith look over his shoulder as he was entering the transporter again.

Rolling his eyes, he chuckled. “Shiro doesn't hate you, but you know what, me too. Fuck this planet, I don’t like it.” 

“I don’t think anybody likes it very much, Keith. God. I just, like I hope… I don’t even know. I just want to leave and not come back- any negotiations can be left to everybody else. I’m done.” Lance sounded tired, and cranky, which Keith could agree with. They hadn't exactly gotten a lot of sleep last night, and being on edge didn’t help.

Well, at least the castle was in place so that they could fly up to it, and whatever atmosphere issue was gone. They were going now, and that was all that mattered.

Sitting down in his spot, Keith looked over to Lance, watching carefully as the boy unfolded and folded his wings hastily. He was nervous, Keith could tell. Maybe it was the planet (which would make a lot of sense) but he had a feeling it was something more- something to do with his wings, especially with whatever was going on with them with the white. But… they were leaving weren’t they? Why would he still be nervous when there wouldn’t be any sort of threat once they got back onto the ship? 

Sighing through his nose, Keith decided to let it go. They weren’t close enough for him to ask Lance what was wrong- he was scared he’d mess up whatever sort of… friendship they had sparked up. The one Lance insisted on, which he agreed to. 

To be honest, it still confused him; why would Lance suddenly change his mind about him? Apologize like that- he had no reason to. No reason to even like him! Keith was mean and anti-social and he was well aware of it, but didn’t know how to fix it. So… he didn’t know. Things were just complicated and weird, but… he wasn’t going to pass up a chance at trying to be friends with Lance- even if the boy was joking or not.

However, Keith's determination to try to be friends with Lance didn’t really solve the problem that he didn’t really know how to  _ have  _ friends. Shiro was literally his only person, his brother practically, but he was different… he knew Keith more than anybody else, had been there when things were bad. Lance was normal. The team was normal. Keith was not.

Snapping out of his thoughts as Lance turned on the controls in front of him, he looked over, eyeing thrusters that Lance had his hands on. He had wanted to fly, but Lance seemed to have beat him to it; it was his own fault, but it still made him deflate a little, even if it was just a little thing. Keith loved flying- it was his thing.

Lance seemed to catch onto this as he caught Keith staring, glancing between him and the controls, connecting the dots. Hesitantly the Cuban boy leaned back, turning off his controls and looking over to Keith.

“You wanna drive this time?” His voice was tentative, a small smile on his face. He was making an effort.

Eyebrows going up, surprised, Keith nodded. “Uh, actually. Yeah. That would be great, Lance…. Thanks.” He shuffled over to where Lance had been and turned the controls back on, feeling the humm of the machine under him. A little smile formed across his face as he radioed in Shiro again, getting the coordinates before lifting off. There was nothing better than seeing that godforsaken city getting smaller and smaller underneath them, ready to go away.

It was going to be a couple of hours, naturally. The transporters weren’t fast, and the team couldn’t bring the ship too close to the planet without causing any distress, so… Keith would just have to put up with it. But he had to admit- after all the thrill and fun of getting the transporter off of the ground and through the atmosphere, it was kind of boring. There was nothing for him to do other than look at the empty space, the promise of the ship appearing in front of them looking pretty bleak. 

The silence was kind of awkward, too. Thankfully, Lance seemed to break it, cutting through it with his voice. 

“So what’s your favourite colour?” 

“Colour?” Keith was confused. What purpose did that have- why did Lance need to know? 

“Y’know. Colour,” Lance made a gesture with his hands. “Friends tell each other their favourite colour to get to know each other. Mine’s blue, which is pretty obvious since my lion is blue.”

“Oh.” So it was a friend thing? He didn’t realize. “Um. I guess my favourite colour is Blue too.”

“What?! Not red? You’re a traitor to your Lion, Keith!”

“I can like a different colour and still be the red paladin, Lance. Besides- Blue was the one I first met anyways! She was what I was fixated on for like a year in a shitty shack in the dessert, so yes. Blue is my favourite colour.” Keith retorted, feeling a fun sense of jest in him, among a little tang of jealousy. Keith was still a little miffed that he didn’t get the Blue Lion, but he knew bright as day the Red was the one for him, that she was _ his _ lion, colours aside.

Lance grew quiet again, and Keith looked over, worried if he had said anything wrong. “What? What did I do?” 

“Nothing… I just forgot that you lived in that shack in the desert for a year- Shiro was gone too… It kind of just dawned on me that you were really alone that whole time and I still thought of you as some prick. I feel like a dick.” Lance was quiet as he stared out the window. He sounded sad, and frustrated with himself. It made Keith feel guilty for some reason, made him feel like it was his fault. 

“Look, Lance- I, If you’re just trying to make it up to me because you said those things, _ it’s fine.  _ I said some really nasty things too, and I egged you on and... You don’t have to feel guilty about anything. What you said was true anyways- I don’t socialize and my wingcare is shit. I don’t know how to take care of my wings- you were right, so you don’t have to feel bad about saying it.” The words blurted out of Keith’s mouth, and he was unable to stop them. But. He felt they were true- they warranted for something. He didn’t want Lance to feel guilty, to worry about him- it wasn’t his fault.

“Wait what?!” Lance’s tone caught Keith by surprise. He sounded shocked and confused- a little angry. “No! No! You can’t just say that! Of course I have to feel guilty- I was awful to you! Even before the big fight. I singled you out and was a dick all because I have insecurities about myself, that shouldn’t be projected onto you. Look,” Lance turned to stare at him, a strange emotion in his eyes. “When I say that I want to be friends with you, I mean it. We worked together to get out of there and you actually cared. Like really cared. You need friends Keith, and I guess… I guess I just really want to help out with that- guilt or no guilt.”

Keith felt shocked. How could- why, why would Lance feel that way? It was… nice. There was something refreshing about it, something that made Keith feel a little happy on the inside, and he couldn’t pin-point it. It was just nice.    
  
Taking in a deep breath, he glanced over to Lance, nodding slowly. “I… I see. I want to be friends with you too, Lance for real. I just had to check… it wouldn’t be right, you know? I’m not really good with people…” 

“It’s okay. I understand. But uh,” a more happier note took over Lance’s voice. “If you need help with your wings I would be happy to help- I have a new shampoo and… I can just show you if you want. On your wings, obviously.” His words sounded hasty during the end, but Keith was touched either way. He needed help with them. He had been trying to work out how he’d ask, how he’d figure it out, but Lance had solved that problem for him. Maybe they were becoming friends after all- maybe it would actually work out! A buzzing feeling went through Keith as he leaned back in his chair, nodding.

“That would be great. Thank you, Lance.”

But… what about Lance? His wings? If they were friends now, would he tell him about the white? Would he ask? Keith shook his head a little, shutting down that question in his mind. No. He didn’t want to break off what little connection they were already forming; Lance was important and he wanted to do well at making his own friend.

Heh. Friend.  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (; (; (; I did a bonding moment I hope you guys like it because I did (even if my writing is a little off whoopppss) I wanted some development between the two- I just hope it doesn't seem too forced! Can you guys let me know??? 
> 
> What do you think is going to happen? What are they going to do about "the others" down there? How is Keith going to handle 'friend making?' lol 
> 
> I hope you guys liked this chapter!!


	6. Friendship: A Complex Topic

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we go! Another relationship-building chapter. I hope you guys liked it- I'm not used to writing fluff, (is this even fluff? I don't know) because my last fic was like a hardcore langst one, lol. But I'm pretty happy with the way that things are going right now! 
> 
> I know that Shiro was being a jerk, and I'm sorry! I kind of just feel like it's a conversation that might come up some times, where Shiro and the team underestimates Lance. I lowkey feel like it sometimes happens in the show, so I wanted to include it in the fic! 
> 
> Also, my chapter lengths: they've been kind of varying, and I'm not sure how much I like that? In my old fic, I used to strictly keep it at 4000 words, give or take about 100 and a couple chapters that I had made 2000. Do you guys ever notice the length? I'm fairly certain they're all over 3000, but I haven't been pushing myself to keep up to my old fic. How do you guys feel about it? Do you feel like they're too short, or too long? 
> 
> If you guys have any suggestions or comments, don't hesitate to let me know! I love all your comments! 
> 
> Thanks!

Lance bit his lip as he fumbled with the face masks in his hand. His sweater was pulled on over top of his wings, keeping them warm as they were tucked against his back. For once they didn’t twitch, still sore from the exertion. He was on his way to Keith’s room, the promise of skin care hopefully enough to let him in. Did Keith even know what face masks were? Lance shrugged to himself, crossing the hall. 

Keith had gotten out of the pod about 15 minutes before dinner, and then vanished in his room after that. He hadn’t been stuck healing for very long- only about an hour or so, since the pods were pretty speedy at healing superficial wounds. Did Keith want to be alone? Was he upset, or mad? Well. Maybe. The mission had been a nightmare. The cuban boy stood paused, outside of Keith’s door, continuing to worry his lip.

Keith had said he wanted to be Lance’s friend. He said he’d like it, and that he needed one, asides from Shiro. Lance had promised to friend the shit out of him, but was he going too far? He looked down at the masks, labelled in some alien language he couldn’t read. Was doing face masks with your ‘new friend’ weird?

Well, he was there. No backing out. Keith had said himself that he didn’t have much experience when it came to friends, so he probably didn’t know what was too far and weird anyways. It would be fine!

Reaching out, Lance knocked on the door, once, twice, before it opened, Keith standing in the doorway. He looked genuinely surprised to see Lance there eyebrows twitched up. But… he didn’t look annoyed, or angry. A little tired, maybe, but not mad. That was a good sign, right?

“What are you doing here Lance?” An honest question.

“Er… I was wondering, if maybe.. You wanted to do a face mask with me? Me and Hunk do them all the time, and I figured it was a pretty “friend fun’ thing to do, since… we decided to be friends and all. But! If you’re tired, or anything or you don’t like face masks It’s chill! I can just go back to my room and… I don’t know, sleep or something, like no pre-”

“Sure, Lance that would be fun.” Keith cut off, sounding a little awkward, but not necessarily in a bad way; more like he wasn’t used to having someone offer to do something with him. 

“Really?” Lance asked, perking up a bit.  “Yeah, why not? We said we’d… try to be friends and all, so like. This is a normal friend thing to do, right?”    
  
“Of course, totally! Like I said, Hunk and I do it all the time and we’re best buds. Just don’t tell him I’m doing one without him!” 

Keith nodded, his mouth twitching into  a small smile, before he stepped aside, letting Lance in. “I’ll be sure to keep my lips sealed.” 

Quickly, Lance got to work, grabbing some towels from the closet the castle provided, quickly dashing to the kitchen to grab two bowls to put the mask into. He finished off, with instructing Keith to sit on the floor in front of him, all his supplies set out, ready to be used.

“Okay, so is it okay if I apply it to your face? I’ve had a lot of experience with these guys, and they can be kind of sticky and hard to manage if you don’t apply them right.” Lance questioned, holding the little applicator brush he used in his hand.

Keith hesitated for a moment, before slowly nodding yes, facing Lance and gently shutting his eyes.

Lance gently went to work, noting the tension he felt in Keith at first, before he relaxed. Quietly, he smoothed the mask over the boy’s face, wondering how in the world he kept his mores so clear without having an obvious skin care routine. Bah. Stupid good genetics.

“So for your wings,” Lance spoke to break the gentle silence that had engulfed them, “if you wanna take care of them, you have to make sure to wash them when you take a shower and smooth out the feathers overnight so they’re not sticking up or anything. Also, limiting plucking helps a lot too.” 

Whoops. He broke that rule, but… Lance had his reasons. Personal reasons. 

Keith nodded, as Lance continued to smooth the paste over his face. There was another silence, before this time, the raven-haired boy broke it.

“What did you mean about Shiro hating you?” 

Wait, what? Well, Lance was not expecting, _ that, _ of all things. What had made Keith think of that? Lance racked his brains, trying to remember when he had mentioned it to Keith, and recalled saying it on the transporter, back on the planet Uilf. Right. 

“Well, er?” Lance sounded a bit awkward. “It’s kind of obvious that he doesn’t really like me that much. Sorry. I think it’s because… I joke around a lot and stuff, and I’m not the greatest fighter… or paladin.”

“What?!” The intensity in Keith’s voice surprised him. “You’re a good Paladin. Shiro doesn't hate you, Lance. He doesn’t hate anybody, except for the Galra. You shouldn’t think like that- I’m sure he thinks you’re a valuable part of the team just like everyone else.” He had gone entirely pink- the tips of Keith’s ears, and the base of his neck going red with embarrassment.. “Or… at least, that’s what Shiro would say. ‘Cuz it’s true.”

Lance coughed awkwardly, and slowly nodded his head. “Yeah, maybe…” How had the vibe changed so quickly?! They had been having a good time, and now everything was just awkward!    
“Well, okay. I think your face mask can be left to dry, now… I’m going to put on my own, and then we can just… chill I guess.” 

“..Okay.” Keith agreed.

“Do you wanna listen to music?”

“You have music?!”

Lance smiled, pulling out his Ipod from his back pocket, and a cord that looked like it would hook up to something in the castle.

“Yep.”

 

* * *

Keith leaned back against his bed, wings spread out, thinking about what had just happened. Lance really was keeping his word on making an effort to be friends with him- to be honest, it surprised Keith a little. But, it wasn’t bad. He was happy about it, in a strange way. They had done face masks, which were actually more enjoyable than he thought they would be, and had talked, and Lance had even given him some tops on taking care of his wings! It was nice. Really nice. 

However, he couldn’t help but feel a little nervous about what he had brought up- Shiro. It had blurted out of his mouth, a persistent thought in his head try it’s best to break out during the silence. Keith was worried he had made things awkward between the two, and that Lance wouldn’t want to come over ever again. Well… things had been salvaged, hadn’t they? Things were okay. They had laughed and talked after that, right? Lance had put on music.

But despite that, it still worried him. Lance’s thoughts on how Shiro viewed him worried him- how could he think so lowly of himself? Of course Shiro wouldn’t think that, because it wasn’t true. He was a great member of the team, if not annoying sometimes. Sure… they had fought and failed the mission, but Lance had tried his best to get information and had apologized. He was trying, and doing a lot better than Keith was!  

Lance seemed a bit more closed off, as well, in terms of showing his wings. It was a subtly Keith noticed a lot actually, because his eyes were always drawn to the team’s wings. He liked looking at them, how powerful they were, so when one set was always hidden away, he was bound to notice.

Was it because of the mission? Were they hurt? Was… was it because of the feathers? The white? Keith found himself gnawing on his lip, head still pressed against the cool wall above his bed. He silently shook his head sighing, leaning down further. Maybe Lance would come clean on his own, but he hoped… he hoped it wasn’t something that was mind consuming- he hoped Lance was okay.

* * *

 

“Alright guys, let’s get going! We’re going to be doing a bit of team training today, a problem solving exercise. Allura’s going to lock us in a room together, and we’re going to have to look at all the clues scattered around it to solve the puzzle to get out. Sounds good?” Shiro stood in front of the Paladins, hands on his hips. With his large wings visible from behind him, lightly brushing against the floor, he looked like a leader. 

Lance felt a smile growing across his face, as memories from earth came back to him. “That sounds like an escape room! We’re going to be doing an escape room as a team training day?”    


“Essentially, yes.”  

“Cool!”

He turned around to give Hunk a fist-bump, smiling at him. The larger teen smiled back, giving him a thumbs up. Lance smiled even wider, and turned around to face Keith, who was still staring up at Shiro, his eyebrows furrowed a little bit.

“Isn’t that cool Keith? An escape room, I used to love doing them with my siblings; it was kind of strange because we could actually solve a lot of them- we worked together in them, even when outside, or back at home we couldn’t even figure out what type of pizza we wanted. I guess the McClain family line is just pure genius.” We gave Keith a wink,  watching as Keith playfully rolled his eyes, before turning back to Shiro.

“Well, let’s get going. We won’t have a time limit, but the catch is: Allura won’t let us out until we solve it. So if anybody has to go to the bathroom, or anything…”

“Okay, hold on. Give me like a minute and then we’ll be all ready to go.”  Lance said hastily, dashing towards the back of the room. Better safe than sorry right? He adjusted the sweater thrown over his wings, and headed out. 

* * *

“Ughhh… come on guys, I’m hungry!” Pidge whined, slamming her head against the wall of the room; her her cream wings twitched every now and again, downy softly poking through her flight feathers. Keith raised his eyebrows, huffing slightly. They had been… they had been doing this for a while, now. Apparently Allura had made the room harder than they thought- even the ‘genius at escape rooms’ Lance seemed to be stuck.

“Yeah, um. We might want to contact Allura, because I  _ really  _ have to go pee, and uh,”

“I thought we were told to go to the bathroom before Hunk,” Pidge replied, looking over to him. “Oh my god. If you pee, I swear to god-”

“I’m not going to pee in here, Pidge! I’m just saying- we might have to bargain with Allura or something!” Hunk stated defensively, his cheeks flush.

Keith sighed, peeling his eyes away from the two, and looking over towards Shiro, who was staring at the door. The one that would let them out; it had four different panels on them, that acted as locks. They had to solve the problem, or riddle on them to get them to unlock. So far, they had three of the four done, but the last one… it was the hardest one. Even Shiro seemed frustrated, and he was always calm, cool and collected, save for when Slav came around.

He heard a noise from beside him, and looked to his left, seeing Lance standing there, eyebrows furrowed, muttering coming from underneath his breath. He went quiet again, lips twitching silently as he worked out whatever problem in his head. The translation that they had to figure out. Suddenly, he shot up, a slightly wild look in his eyes,

“I’ve got it! I figured it out!”

Shiro looked over to him, and Keith was surprised to see the disbelief in his eyes, the skepticism, along with… annoyance. He raised his eyebrows and crossed his arms.    
“Okay… what is it?”

“I think, if you look at the the word ‘treskik,’ as ‘land’ instead of ‘soil’ it’ll make a lot more sense.”

“Will it now?” Shiro questioned, a bit of a clip in his voice. “Because I thought that we all agreed that it was soil- you included. If we change it now, and it’s not right, it might mess everything up.”

Lance sighed, “Or it might fix everything, and we can finally get out of here.”

“I don’t think you’re right, Lance.” Keith winced at Shiro’s words, biting his lip.

“Hey! I’ve had a lot more experience with translating stuff than you do! I’m Bilingual!” 

“Spanish is hardly an alien language, Lance.” 

“Sill more than you!” Lance’s voice became more clipped, strained. His eyebrows furrowed as he walked towards the panel, shoving Shiro out of the way. His nimble fingers worked with the panel, switching the words, before he pressed “okay” 

There was a tense silence throughout the room, Shiro angry, Hunk and Pidge confused. Slowly, the panel activated, turning green, and then the door swung open, revealing the training room to everyone.

“Yesss, great work Lance!” Hunk exclaimed, giving him a clap on the back, “I’ll make you some dessert or something, but I gotta go!”

Pidge thanked him as well, before leaving, but Keith could tell Lance hardly registered it. He was too busy staring at Shiro, a mixture of hurt and annoying donning his face. “See? I told you.”

Shiro sighed, crossing his arms. “We should have decided that as a team, Lance.”

“You weren’t listening to me! And I was right, wasn’t I?!”

“Still. Team.”

Keith could feel anger bubbling up in him, as he watched the situation go down. Somehow, he understood Lance’s words a bit better now, his comment on Shiro, as he watched him walk away wordlessly. Lance had every right to think that way- especially if that was how Shiro treated him. How did Keith not see that before?

Waiting until Lance left the room, he stepped up to Shiro, grasping his shoulder. The older man’s expression changed when he saw Keith.

“I’m sorry you had to see that, bud.”

Keith felt a twinge of annoyance.

“Me too.” He voice sounded thick, dark almost.

“What’s up?”

He stayed quiet for a bit, gathering his thoughts, trying to think in between the anger he felt. Keith looked up, staring at Shiro. “You’re doing a shit job being a leader to Lance, you know.”

Shiro took a step back, surprise littering his face. “Excuse me?” 

“Y’know,” Keith waved his hands, “Being the Black Paladin, listening to everyone else, getting their input. Treating them fairly! Being a leader! You just fucking shot im down back in the room- you didn’t even want to listen to his idea, and you didn’t even apologize when he was right! You yelled at him!”

Shiro sighed. “He was in the wrong, Keith- the team needs to be unified-”

“How can it be unified when you won’t look at Lance like he’s a valuable member of the team? When you won’t even take his input into consideration. He has good ideas, Shiro. He’s smart, even if he makes jokes in between.”

Shiro opened his mouth to reply, but Keith stopped him, cutting him off. “Shut up for a moment- let me finish. We;’e been talking more, Lance and I. After the mission. He told me he thinks you hate him, he says he’s not a good paladin! He doubts himself, and I tried to defend you. Now I realize that he’s been right all along- not him being a bad paladin, but you disliking him and not treating him fairly. I’m disappointed in you, Shiro.”

With that, he let go of Shiro’s shoulder, walking away, Shiro staring at him, hurt, surprised and guilty.

Keith was right.

 

* * *

Lance was sprawled out across Hunk’s bed, a face mask drying on his face. It was their “best friend time,” as they called it. It happened about once every week, where they would just chill with each other and reminisce about the old times, tell stories of the garrison and of sneaking out to go to parties in the town nearby. Lance missed being back on earth, but laughing at the memories of Hunk making faces at him while he was trying to flirt with a girl made his time in space just a little bit better.

They sat in comfortable silence, listening to Lance’s music that he had on his Ipod- an alarming amount of Lady Gaga, but enjoyable nonetheless. He thought about the training earlier that day, feeling a spark of annoyance still. But… Shiro had apologized to him- right before supper. Had pulled him into an empty hallway and said sorry, admitting to being unfair and overly judging with him. By the look of the guilt that had been in his eyes- Shiro had been sincere, and to be honest, Lance hadn’t expected it. It was nice, though… it gave him the illusion that he wasn’t actually a bad Paladin, and that his ideas were actually okay some of the time. At least one of them had helped them, right? 

Things were tense, for Lance though. More than before, with the whole problem with his wings. He was trying to push it away, trying to forget about it and bottle it up so he wouldn't have to think about it, because it lead to a line of unhappy thoughts and actions. So, keeping his wings tucked away as if they didn’t even exist and casting the word “white” from out of his mind, seemed to work. If plucking wasn’t working (which it obviously wasn’t), then he’d just keep them hidden and not think about it. He wouldn’t be distracted then, and nobody would find out if he was careful.

“So Lance,” Hunk brought him out of his thoughts. “You and Keith…”

“What about me and Keith?” He questioned lazily, staring up at the ceiling. Hunk was being a good distraction. Good Hunk.

“You two seem… closer? I haven’t seen you two fight yet!” 

“We decided to try to be friends, for the good of Voltron.” Lance sighed, biting his lip. 

“Wow, that’s great!” Hunk exclaimed, sitting up to look at his friend. “Seriously Lance, that’s really mature of you. I’m like, super proud bro.” 

Lance laughed, “Jeez, it’s like I just admitted to you I was going to stop smoking, or anything. Is being friends with Keith really ‘that mature?”  

“Of course dude. You guys hated each other, and now you’re friends? Super mature. Great effort.”  Hunk smiled at him, earning a smile back. Lance slowly nodded his head.

“Yeah, I guess. Thanks bud.”

“So…. you sure you don’t have a crush on him?” 

“What?!” Lance spluttered, shooting up onto his feet so fast, he almost toppled forward. “No!”

Hunk burst out into laughter, clutching his stomach. “Ha, ha, ha, that was a great reaction, oh my god, that was beautiful. You should see the look on your face!”

Lance stuck his tongue out at him, crossing his arms. There was no way he had a crush on Keith- not in a million years!

No. Freaking. Way. 


	7. The Mission

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> vomit and graphic description warning

“So you and Keith know where these prisoners are being held?” Allura turned to Lance, her expression mixed with worry and thought. 

Lance nodded slowly, his arms crossed, thinking about his time there. A shiver went down his spine as he remembered the piles upon piles of white feathers, and how they resembled his own. He knew exactly where the prisoners were, and it would be part of his job to get them out- not only as a Paladin, but as a decent human being. They were suffering!

“If you guys know, then we can come up with a plan to get them out.” Shiro spoke up across from him, his arms folded. Things were still a little tense between him and Lance, but it seemed to be improving; Shiro had been true to his words, apparently.

“Exactly.” Keith stepped forward from beside Lance, his eyebrows furrowed. “It’ll have to be a stealth mission- we know who the owner and his daughter is, and we can knock them out or something, but I don’t know if they have any guards or anything. Lance and I didn’t run into any when we were escaping, but they could have easily added more after we left.”

“Okay, so it’ll be a stealth mission. No contact with the enemy unless necessary.” Shiro decided, nodding his head.

Lance shifted uncomfortably. He wanted to go back. Of course he did. But… he had some problems, some fears that just wouldn’t go away. Almost all the colour was gone now- only a few brown feathers left. Now, more than ever did Lance just want to hide away, to will the colour back into the wings he once called pretty.

Swallowing hard, Lance could sense Keith’s gaze on him, intense as always, but he refused to meet it. Keith already had a whiff of what was going on with him, and he didn’t need to know anything else about it. Even if they were “friends.”

“Allura and I will further discuss the details and come back to you with a plan later tonight. We’ll head out first thing in the morning,” more words Lance took in nervously. With a nod of his head, Shiro disappeared with Allura at his side, leaving the rest of the Paladins to talk among themselves.

A steady hand clapped the back of Lance’s shoulder, and he turned around to see Hunk smiling down at him. “We’ll get to rescue them, Lance! We’ll become heroes just like Allura said we would.” There was a genuity in Hunk’s beam that made Lance smile right back. He really was a ray of sunlight.  

“Of course we will, bud! Then you can go and brag to Shay about how great you are and everything.” Lance nudged his buddy in the ribs playfully, watching the blush spread across Hunk’s cheeks, and the embarrassed twitch in his feathers.

“That’s not why I want to do it! I want to do it to help those people, not just to get… bragging rights! I swear!”

Lance laughed, nodding. “Surrreee,”

“Hey!”

“Yeah, yeah, I know. I believe you. I’m just messing around- it’s just great to see you so excited buddy,” Lance clapped him on the back. “Well, I’ll see you around dinner time. I want to catch a few winks before Shiro starts up his lecture again. Bye!”

“Bye!”

Oh, wouldn’t it be easy to be as happy as Hunk? The dude was literally a ray of light, someone that brightened up Lance’s life, but… Lance swallowed hard. Would  he really be so willing to be friends with someone like him? A defect, ugly? Someone with white wings? 

Lance tried to cast away those thoughts as he walked out of the command room, down towards his room. There was nothing he could do about it. 

* * *

His mind felt blank. Empty. Uneasy. Looking into the mirror, hair wet and dripping, chest bare, Lance stood there motionless, eyes trained on his feathers. There was no going back. There was no “plucking” to purge out the disease- there was no colour left on his wings. It would be useless; the beautiful cherry brown was gone, the rich undertones and shine non-existent.

He could feel bile rising up in his throat as he struggled to swallow, jaw clenching as he continued to stare. Lance didn’t know what to think. Didn’t know what to do.  How was he supposed to deal with this? Here, and when he got back home? How was he supposed to explain to his Mama that it had come back, and he had no option but to just let it happen. Lance could blame it on space, and the stress of everything, but that didn’t change anything. It didn’t change how he looked, and how others would perceive him.

Cold droplets of water dripped onto his neck. Lance stared at his own reflection, blank eyes meeting each other.

What was he supposed to do now?

“All Paladins to the Hangar please- the mission is about to start!” Allura’s voice rang over the intercom, snapping Lance out of his thoughts. He looked up, sucking in a breath. Duty calls. He was a Paladin, a soldier after all, that always came first. The mission was important. He was going to save people- maybe it would make him feel a bit better, a little less…. Inadequate.

Reaching down to grab his shirt, he carefully folded his still damp wings against his back. Securing his sweater over top of everything, hiding every feather, Lance quickly left the bathroom, heading towards his room to put on his suit.  

He took a deep breath as the armour slid over his body, conforming and fitting to it like it was specifically designed for him. His wings didn’t go through the holes, kept safely tucked away underneath everything, hidden from the outside world. If the people from that fucked up planet saw them, he’d be gone for- the whole mission would be jeopardized.

Lance just hoped no one else would notice.

 

* * *

Keith found himself standing next to Shiro, arms crossed and foot tapping impatiently. Lance was taking too long. Where was he?! He couldn’t have slept in- it was far too of an important mission to miss. Plus, he had been the one to see the trapped Uilfflings; surely he wouldn’t sleep in with them on his mind.

His wing tips twitched nervously as he waited, trying to ignore the side-eye Shiro was giving him. Things were still a little tense between the two ever since Keith called him out, and he honestly felt a little uneasy about everything, even if Shiro had apologized. Some part of him kept whispering that it wasn’t his place to say anything, that it wasn’t right to call out your superior, but Keith  _ knew  _ that wasn’t how Shiro wanted to be addressed. He knew Shiro wanted a team dynamic, where suggestions and new ideas were always welcome, but things were still difficult. The dynamic at the Garrison was still drilled into everyone’s minds, and made certain things hard to deal with.

He sighed, finally looking over to meet Shiro’s gaze. It was as uneasy as his own, questioning and a little guilty. Immediately Keith felt himself relax; this was Shiro. The man who had helped him with almost everything- his brother. They knew each other, loved one another; this was nothing they couldn’t handle. Just a little spat.

Over the hushed murmuring, frantic footsteps could be heard ringing throughout the hangar, making Keith turn to see who it was. His shoulders relaxed as he saw Lance hurriedly walking over, armor on, looking a little frazzled.

“Good to see you made it Lance, though try to be a little bit quicker next time.” Shiro greeted him, dipping his head. 

“Yeah, sorry Shiro. I was in the shower when Allura called us- I had to dry off and stuff. Won’t happen again.” Did Lance sound different?    
  
Keith looked between him and Shiro, trying to judge if anything had happened between them again. Lance… he sounded off. Distant; Shiro hadn’t been treating him unfairly had he? A bit of anger bubbled up, rising into his chest as he glanced at Shiro’s face. He couldn’t of. No. But still… habits were hard to get rid of… Keith swallowed hard, looking away. Once the mission was over and done with, he’d sort everything out. Lance was important too, and he deserved just as much help as everybody else. 

“Alright,” Allura clapped her hands, moving to the front of everyone. “Since both Keith and Lance know the way, you guys will split up into two groups. Shiro, Keith, you’ll be one group, Hunk, Lance, Pidge you two will be the other. You shall enter in separate intervals and work towards freeing the slaves as quietly and discretely as you can. You will re-group at the safe-spot after exactly one and a half Vargas- please try to be on time, and check in regularly. Do not hesitate to call in for help if needed, but try to remain unseen and undetected. Each group will go down in a pod as to not draw attention to yourselves- good luck.”  

Keith found himself slowly nodding throughout her instructions, folding and unfolding his wings as she spoke. The mission was fairly straightforward; it should be a success, considering how he and Lance got out without coming into any contact with anyone else. But, that being said, they might of upped security since then; it was a tough call to make, but it was important to free those poor people.

He cast another glance towards Lance, still a bit worried about his recent behaviour. Was he going to be okay? Keith found himself trying to shake those thoughts out of his head- Lance didn’t want pity or excessive worrying over him. He’d be able to hold himself just fine. He was capable.

A hand clipped his shoulder, and Keith turned to look up to Shiro.

“Ready?”

“Yep. Let’s head out.”  

Shiro gave him a curt nod before turning to head to the pods, walking over. Keith followed him, easily stepping inside of it, sitting down next to him.

“So, you know exactly where these slaves are being held?” Shiro asked, as the door closed behind him, and he flicked on the controls of the pod. He looked at home sitting there, hands on the controls, back leaning against the chair. He really was made to be a pilot.

“I remember where they were being held, yes, because that’s where Lance was being held. I don’t know if they moved them or not, though.” Keith replied, watching as the hangar door opened, revealing the open space in front of them, and the planet they were supposed to land on. “If they’re not there, though, we’ll just have to keep our heads low and keep looking. They seriously need help.”

“Why was Lance being held with them, and not you?” Shiro asked, eyes concentrated in front of him as they blasted off, Lance’s team not far behind them. “Weren’t you both prisoners?”

Keith felt a pang of worry flash in his gut- it was something he asked himself too. He knew it had to be something to do with Lance’s… feathers, but he still wasn’t sure why they were harvesting white feathers in the first place. But Lance’s feather colours weren’t something for him to talk about openly- he had managed to catch a glimpse of something deeply personal, that he probably shouldn’t have seen, and Keith felt that it would be bad if he spread any info of it to anybody else.

“Probably just to keep us separated, I don’t know,” Keith lied, with a shrug of his shoulders. “They don’t make a lot of sense.” 

Shiro turned his head to look at him, eyes a bit narrowed for a second, before returning them to the window in front of him. “I guess that’s true. Something about it just feels fishy, that’s all. Especially with all this feather business.”    
  
Keith hummed his agreement, nodding his head, even though he knew Shiro couldn’t see him. “Yeah they’re pretty fucking-” 

“Language.” Keith rolled his eyes.

“-Weird. Once you get down there you’ll see what I mean.”

Shiro shrugged, sighing. “Well, at least we’re fulfilling our duties as paladins.”

“Yeah.” Keith turned, to look out at the planet growing larger in front of them. “Doing what we were chosen for.” 

* * *

Keith could feel his heartbeat raise as soon as they stepped foot in the dungeon, having found a back way in- Lance had pointed it out during their escape, and it was perfect for their re-entry. It was a lot easier than trying to walk right in, through the front of the store. Though, it was night-time; things might of still gone okay, but Shiro wasn’t about to risk it, and neither was Keith. This place was fucking creepy.

He had to consciously force his wings still, to keep them from twitching and making noise as they walked down the corridors, small flashlights on their suits lighting their way. Keith had to wonder if the calmness coming off of Shiro was real or just a front; if he was putting on a brave face for the team. Something inside of him said it was the latter, but he didn’t bring it up. 

“Lance here, just entered the facility. We’ll be behind you guys, ready to help out when needed. We’re following your trail.” Lance rang in over the comms, sounding directly into Keith’s ear. Everybody had the same earpiece, to that the radio comms wouldn’t make any noise outside. Talking into it, however, would just have to be a risk they’d have to take; there wasn’t any mind links between them, or anything. 

“Roger that, Lance. We’ve just about reached where the slaves were being held. Proceed carefully.” Keith replied, trying to keep his voice as quiet as possible, whilst still being able to be heard by Lance.

“Got it.”

Keith looked up to Shiro, giving him a nod. The room should be just around the corner; he stopped, pressing himself up against the wall to listen. There was silence, no sign of any guards, or people waiting for him. It felt weird- out of the norm. The place was exactly how it was like when he and Lance managed to escape; wouldn’t they place security, or something? Why was it so empty.

They still had to free the people, Keith argued with himself. They were right there, just around the corner, and through the door. Just as long as he got them out of there, everything would be okay. Besides, Shiro was also with him.

Taking a deep breath, Keith turned the corner, seeing that it was empty like he had expected. It was a few steps to the door, before he paused, looking up at Shiro again. The man looked a little tense, but that was to be expected considering they were in a dark, damp hallway trying to save an alien race that he had never known existed two years prior. Shit wore down people.

“Alright. Let’s go in, “ Shiro urged, looking at Keith pointedly. “Let’s get out of here.” 

He nodded and turned, placing his hand on the door and pushing it forward. 

What he saw next was unimaginable. They were dead, every last one of them. Blood pooled around them, sticky and partially dried. Keith froze, feeling a sense of horror flash blindingly through him, sickness settling in his stomach making him gag.

They were plucked bare, wing bones naked and bloody.

He threw up, Shiro frozen beside him.

It seemed like hours, days, years, before a voice brought Keith out of his trance, staring horrified at the scene in front of him. It was Shiro, telling him to turn around, a hand forcibly turning his shoulder, pushing him out.

“Come on Keith,” His voice shook, shaken. There was no longer a calm and cool facade surrounding him. Keith’s leader was just as rattled as he was. “Come on.”

He caught himself, and hurried out, feeling the bile rise up in his throat again, image permanently seared in his brain. Breathing in shakily, he brought a finger up to his earpiece, speaking into it.

“L-Lance, they’re dead. Shiro and I just found them, I- we should leave. Something’s wrong.”

There was silence from Lance’s end. It unnerved him. “Lance?” He asked into the comm again, glancing over to Shiro. “Lance?!” Silence. 

Until he heard his scream echo down the halls. 

Fuck. 

* * *

 

Lance struggled against the hands holding him down- Uilfflings, wearing masks. They hit him three or four times, which did a bit to slow him down, but it was the piercing knife, slipped through the cracks in his armour just above the knee that made him scream- he could feel it scraping against his knee.

“Get off of me you sick fucks!” His comm had been ripped away from his ear- Hunk and Pidge tied up and paralyzed next to him. They had been hit with a dart of some sort, piercing through the cracks of their armour, but Lance had managed to dodge his before getting grabbed. He fought in front of them, his teammates unable to do anything than just simply watch in horror.

“Keith! Shiro!” He hollered, struggling, chest heaving. There must have been something on that knife- a fire was spreading up his thigh, and his movements felt more sluggish. It was getting harder to struggle.

Lashing out, Lance felt himself stumble to the ground, hands and arms scraping against the stone.

“Fuck!”

He could see their masks peering down at him, before hands grabbed at him, pushing him over, forcing him to the ground. His limbs wouldn’t move anymore- they were stuck, sluggish and slow. Lance heaved again, trying to use whatever energy he had left into him to struggle some more- to hold them off. It was no use.

They tugged at his back armour, scraping against it, prying the panels off. He felt the air touch his wings, humid, as they were yanked out, sweater ripped and pushed aside.

“Found them.” One of them spoke, looking to the other. Lance could almost see the smile of his beak from behind the mask, wicked and unforgiving. “Another for the plucking. Master will be happy that we were able to find him; his feathers are worth more  because he is of a different species. Exotic.” 

“You’re a piece of shit,” He hissed, straining his head to look at them. “Doing this to your own kind- barbaric. What a piece of  _ shit. _ ” 

His head was shoved forward, pushed roughly against the stone, cutting his forehead. “Stop speaking. It is the way of the Uilflings to harvest those with the pure feathers; a offering the the king and the goddess, to be worn by their subjects. The blood we will spill from you today and the feathers we will pluck will be a fine offering.”

Lance could hear a strangled choke coming from Hunk. He had forgotten that he was watching- that he could see Lance’s wings. Lance squeezed his eyes shut, looking away, trying to focus on something else. Keith. Keith would be here soon, with Shiro… hopefully.

He felt a prick coming from his wings- a feather being plucked. It hurt more than when he did it himself. It brought back his memories of his childhood, which in turn made tears pool up in his eyes as he realized he might die kneeled there, while some fucked up bird plucked out his feathers.

“Hunk, Pidge. Look away. Please.” He knew they couldn’t respond, but hopefully they could listen. Hopefully.

The Uilflings laughed harshly, pulling out more, before he felt the pick of a knife pressing up against his neck.

“Dios.”

“OH NO YOU DON’T YOU FEATHERED FUCKS!” Lance’s eyes snapped open as the knife was drawn away from his neck, surprise and relief taking over him as he immediately recognized the voice. Keith’s voice. The hold on him loosened, and he was let go of, collapsing to the ground, wings splayed out awkwardly over top of him.

He managed to turn around just in time to see Keith and Shiro beating the shit out of the Uilflings, knocking them to the ground.

Keith turned to look at him, his eyes wide. “Lance.”

His wings were out.

Shiro’s eyes went round when he saw him.

His wings were out.

Hunk and Pidge couldn’t stop staring.

His wings were out. 

* * *

 

Keith couldn’t stop the images from forming in his head. He needed to go, to get away from everybody for a little while- especially Shiro. He wouldn’t stop asking if he was okay, if he needed to talk about anything, if he knew about Lance’s wings. He knew about Lance’s wings. He knew about how they were turning white, but he hadn’t said anything about it.    
  
The team was shocked. They didn’t know what to think- the mission had been a horrible, horrible, fail. The type of fail that would haunt Keith’s dreams for many nights to come. Hunk and Pidge had almost watched Lance get murdered!  They were confused about his wings- not necessarily… judging. But confused. Surprised; the prejudice left on them from earth was still there, still sticking to them. Keith had never grown up with that prejudice. 

Lance was nowhere to be seen. He had gone into the pod, as did Hunk and Pidge, but when he emerged he had just walked past everybody, no eye contact, to nothing. He seemed scared. Keith shook his head, biting his lip. The mission had taken its toll on Lance, perhaps even more than it had taken its toll on him. His wings had been shown, a secret he had been keeping revealed. 

Keith hoped he was okay. They were “friends,” weren’t they? Sure, they bickered and Lance hadn’t exactly been his favourite person when they first met, but they had grown up a bit. Things were changing.

His wings fluttered and twitched uncomfortably as he walked down the halls, somewhere on the upper floors of the castle, clearing his head. Keith’s feathers were bent of some of them broken from the fight, but he didn’t bother to deal with them. All he’d end up doing was pluck them out probably… or maybe try to see if he could use that shampoo Lance had recommended. Maybe if he asked Lance, he would get some help? Would that make Lance feel better? Keith shook his head unknowingly; he didn’t know what would make the boy better. He was bad in situations like those.

Keith stopped in front of a door- he didn’t know what was on the other side, but was about to find out.

It was a bathroom.

Lance was there.

There was a pile of white on the ground.

He was plucking out his feathers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's out!!! It's out!!!! 
> 
> Thank you guys so much for all of your support and comments when I posted that update. It really helped me! And thank you for being patient with me! And I will definitely use your suggestions!! 
> 
> But it's out!!! I finished it!! I hope you guys like it. It's fucking intense omg 
> 
> Let me know how you feel about it! 
> 
> Thank you so much!!


	8. A Night Of Stars

Lance could feel the sting of his wings, the coolness of the air touching the bare flesh. It was like he was in a trance, in a dream; his body wasn’t quite his own, the hands that were moving towards each and every finger weren’t being moved by him. 

It was like, one moment he was fine, he was okay, and the next a whirlwind of trauma and fear had pushed him past the tipping point. A lot of things had contributed to push him past the tipping point.

Really, he had been lying to himself for a long time. It wasn’t just the white of his wings that were making him do this, or the fact that his teammates had seen his secret, but it was something… more deeply set than that. More rooted. It was like a virus, that had embedded itself deep inside of his body, tendrils pulling at his mind, changing it in subtle ways, and now, when he had been most vulnerable, it had attacked.

And so here he was, plucking out his feathers because it was the only thing that seemed to calm the insufferable weight and pressure in his chest and mind.

Lance watched as another feather fell to the ground, so gently, so stark and with an elegance that was so unlike the rest of his body.

A door opened, or wait did it? Lance couldn’t peel his eyes away from the pile, flight feathers and under downy lying there. There were still more feathers on his wings, patches here and there that he still needed to get rid of. He hadn’t got in any specific order, after all.

The door. A voice. His name.

Lance reached his hand up to pull another one out, but a force stopped him, a hand, fingers stopped him, holding his arm in place. He could feel the warmth of the person’s body heat seeping through his skin. He looked up, eyes unfocused.

“Lance! Lance!” Dark hair that curled around the person’s face and neck, eyes that were black, or maybe indigo. Pale skin. Light lips. He blinked. It was Keith.  “Lance, you have to stop. Please, Lance!”

What was going on? Why was this person talking to him- wasn’t he disgusted? Didn’t he see all the white surrounding him? Didn’t he see his wings? Lance tried to yank his hand away, struggling against the person’s grip. 

“Lance, stop.” The tone had changed; it was more dire, commanding. He looked up, staring at the person again.    
  
It was Keith. 

“No,” he muttered, looking away. “No, I have to get rid of them.” He pulled his hand away, feeling Keith’s fingers slip away from his wrist. “Please,” a tear dripped down his cheek. “They have to go.”

Keith lunged towards him, as he moved towards his wings again, this time both arms holding him down. Lance had never seen his face so serious, so pulled tight with emotion.

“Lance, no. Stop. You can’t do this to yourself, your wings! They’re beautiful, why would you hurt them like this?”

Lance gave him a look, vision and head clearing a little the more Keith spoke to him. He could feel his own emotions running throughout his body, burning from within. He shook his head, a sob escaping his lips. 

“They’re ugly! Deformed! You-you’ve seen it,” his breathing hitched, his body’s actions not his own, “they’re white. I have the disease.”

Keith stared at him, his own eyes swimming with something Lance couldn’t quite understand. “Lance, they’re not deformed. They’re feathers- how does… how does their colour affect anything?”

He swallowed, looking away for a moment, before returning his gaze back to Keith. There was so many reasons for his wings to be classified as deformed, so many reasons for him to be classified as ugly. Sub-par. “It’s not right. I’m ugly. It’s not good for you guys to look at me.”

“What the fuck?!” Keith’s outburst startled Lance. “I’m sorry, but what. The. Fuck. Your wings are white. It’s a colour, just like anything else. You wouldn’t think differently of anybody else if they had brown or black wings, so why is white any different? I’m sorry Lance, but that's just stupid.” 

“There was a girl in my class with white wings. People thought of her different. They.. treated her different.” Lance sniffled, biting his cheek so hard he could taste blood.

“Then the people around you judging her were stupid. Messed up.”

“I got it when I was a kid, too. They plucked all of my feathers, and they grew back right. I have to do it again.”

Keith’s grip around his arm tightened, and his adam’s apple bobbed up and down. “You shouldn’t have to do that.  _ This _ .” His voice cracked at the end of his sentence, and Lance could see his lip quiver ever so slightly. 

“What do the others think of me, Keith? I’m a mess, I- I can’t, I don’t know-”

“They think of you just the same as they’ve thought of you this whole time. They’re you’re friends. They care about you.  _ I care about you. _ ”

Lance felt more tears slide down his cheeks, dripping freely off of his chin. He felt Keith’s arms wrap around him, his face suddenly being buried in his chest.

“Lance, we care about you. You don’t have to do this.”

He sniffled. “ Okay.”

Keith held him for a few more moments, the warmth from his body radiating over to Lance, before drawing away. “Let’s get you on over to the med wing, okay? We don’t have to get Coran, but... “ 

Lance nodded. 

“No, get Coran… just. Help.”

 

* * *

Shiro swallowed his spit as he stiffly sat on the couches in the common room, Hunk and Pidge with him. It was a failure. The mission was a failure- his mind flashed to the dead Uilfflings they had found. And now, Lance… Keith had found him, and his wings...he felt his fists clench, fingernails leaving crescent shaped imprints in his real hand.

“Oh my god,” Hunk’s voice dragged Shiro from his own thoughts, as he looked over to him, concerned. The effects had worn off on both he and Pidge pretty quickly after they had returned to the castle, but he could tell that they were still shaken up. As they should be.

“Lance,  _ Lance,  _ he was-” It sounded like the larger man was going to break down.

“I know, I know,”  Pidge replied, sniffling. She was sitting next to him, her little wing stretched out over his left shoulder.    
  
“His wings- why? How didn’t we know?” 

Shiro sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. He didn’t even know that himself- the white, the disease. When he thought about it now, it surprised him, but he couldn’t care less what colour Lance’s wings were. They weren’t on earth anymore- those sort of things didn’t matter. He could fly, he could still make jokes, he was still Lance. But to think… he was going through it alone, hiding his condition from everybody… Shiro shook his head.

It made Shiro feel even worse about things. About how he had treated Lance.  Keith had chewed him out for it, and he was grateful, and he had apologized, but… that didn’t make up for anything. It didn’t make up for his actions. Shiro needed to make things right.

Fuck.  _ Fuck. _

How had he not seen it? How had he not seen the way he was treating him? How had he not caught himself when he had yelled at him during the team exercise? Why had it taken Keith yelling at him to realize? Why had it taken Lance being forcefully held down, with his wings pried open to see what was happening to him- to see that he was hiding a secret from all of them for so long? He should have done better-

“Shiro, it’s not your fault.” Pidge’s voice rung out through his thoughts.

“What?” 

“It’s not your fault- you’re blaming yourself, aren’t you?” She sounded concerned, and tired. Worried.

Shiro sucked in a breath, fists curling in harder on themselves. “I- it’s just, this all could have been prevented. All of it. If I had just done more-”

“No, stop. You can’t do that. Nobody could’ve predicted that they’d use whatever chemical that was on us- when Lance and Keith left, there was only two people after them. Sure we could have planned more, but that would have taken more time and we needed to get in there to… rescue the prisoners..” Pidge trailed off as she talked, voice growing dark as she mentioned the prisoners they were supposed to save, and didn’t. “But it wasn’t your fault. It was nobodies” Shiro could see Hunk nodding next to her, eyes red and teary.

He leaned back into the couch, resting his head up against the headrest. 

“I just want Lance to be okay.” Hunk murmured, glancing towards the door that lead towards the clinic. “I can’t believe… I just want to be in there with him.” Pidge’s wing tightened over Hunk- in any situation, it would have been humorous seeing her tiny wing barely taking up a quarter of his shoulder, but now it was just nice to see that they were supporting each other. 

“He’ll be okay, Keith’s with him… he said Lance didn’t want anybody else in there with him except for Keith and Coran, but… He’ll be okay. He’s Lance.” Pidge murmured, sounding a little unsure of herself.

“Every time I close my eyes, I think of when we were paralyzed and they were going to  take away his feathers… and he told us to look away- to look away from his wings. I can’t get it out of my head, that image. It hurt so much to see him like that.” Hunk began to cry again, large tears dropping down his cheeks.

“Hunk…” Shiro breathed, pained to see his team member so burdened. “I understand what you’re going through. We all do.”

It was crazy to see how much had happened in just a span of a few hours. Well, actually, it wasn’t. It had only been a few hours between him being fine on that moon, and then being taken by the Galra; it had only been a few hours between him escaping somehow, and being reunited with Keith and joining Voltron.  Everything extreme and life-changing seemed to happen in a flash, in a heartbeat. Why was that?

Hunk opened his mouth to say something, but was interrupted by the clinic door opening, Keith poking his head through. He looked absolutely exhausted, dark circles under his eyes, hair more messed up than usual.

“He’s… he’s okay now guys. You can come in and see him if you want to- Hunk, he was asking for you.”

Shiro got up quickly, following Hunk and Pidge in, eager, yet a little nervous to see him.

Lance was sitting on the bench. He looked pale, his usually flawless skin dull and without luster. Shiro’s eyes slid over to his wings- as did Hunk’s and Pidge’s. They were bare. Bandaged. Completely featherless.

* * *

Keith hung back as everybody else entered the room, greeting Lance, hugging him. Hunk was crying, but Keith was feeling pretty emotionally drained himself. He wasn’t sure what to do. Everything that had happened, it all flashed through his brain, running through his mind at top speed. Finding Lance in that bathroom… seeing him so out of it, in a trance, plucking his own feathers until his wings were bare.

They were friends, just barely, yet… the amount of fear in his chest when he had seen Lance like that, and when he had heard Lance screaming in the dungeon… it had terrified him. He was still terrified.

Keith wasn’t used to being ‘friends’ with someone- he was anti-social, and was awkward, and Lance was his first friend other than Shiro. How was he supposed to react to this? How was he supposed to feel other than shock and something that made him feel a little empty?

“Keith,” A hand clapped on his shoulder, making him jump a little, feathers tensed. It was Shiro, looking at him, eyes swimming with concern. “Are you okay?”

Keith shrugged. He wasn’t, but Shiro didn’t look all that better off.

“You should get some rest- you look like you need it.” Shiro mentioned, his eyebrows knitting together like they always did when he was worried. 

Keith shook his head, “not yet- I promised Lance that I would walk him back to his room when everyone was done and I don’t intend to break it.” He wasn’t going to leave him to walk down the halls on his own. He didn’t even want to leave him when he dropped him off at his bedroom, but he couldn’t exactly just say ‘hey can I sleep in here tonight’ without sounding like a weirdo and a creep. 

“Something’s changed between you two.”

Keith’s eyebrows raised, but he only shrugged. “We’re friends now, Shiro… I can’t be fighting with him all the time. Plus… I don’t know…” His voice grew quieter, so the others wouldn’t hear. “After finding him like that, I just… it scares me thinking about him being alone…” Keith bit his lip, wingtips shifting nervously.

“I understand.” Shiro responded simply, gazing on over at Hunk and Pidge talking with him, hugging him and holding his hands, Coran watching over them a few steps away. “But he has all of us- we’re his family. We can… help him get better.”

“We’ve been a pretty shit family.” Keith muttered, eyes growing dark.

“Yeah, we have. But we can fix it.”

Keith sighed, slowly nodding his head. He wanted to fix things. He wanted everybody to be happy and okay- he’d probably do anything for that to happen.

There was a silence between the two of them as they continued to watch the four from their little corner, a kind of hushed tone washing over everybody. It was like that feeling you got when you couldn’t quite believe something had happened, but it did, and everything felt a little out of order. A little dream-like.    
  
“Where’s Allura?” Keith asked, his gaze unflinching as he watched Lance. 

“She’s meeting with the planet’s King right now.” Shiro replied, his voice a little tense.

“Excuse me?”

“She insisted on going alone, so that we could be with Lance. We got a message from the king after the mission, and she went to go reply to it; she said that she would be perfectly safe, and that she could handle being out on her own and I believe her.”

“She shouldn’t have gone alone.” Was all that Keith said, before urging Shiro  to go talk to Lance, to get a word or two in before everybody decided to go to bed.

It was strange looking at Lance without his feathers. It made Keith indescribably sad, for whatever reason, to see him there, looking so bare… empty. There wasn’t any fire in Lance. It made Keith want to hold him close, shield him from whatever ugly thoughts were going through his mind.

Another thirty minutes or so passed by, before everybody decided to head to bed. Pidge had fallen asleep, her head falling right  into Lance’s lap, before Shiro had called, it, and Hunk had picked her up, giving one last tearful goodnight to Lance, before leaving.

Shiro had followed behind them, giving Keith a look, before tugging at Coran’s arm, and disappearing through the doorway. They were alone together.

“Well, do you want to head off?” Keith asked, feeling the weight of exhaustion pulling at his limbs. He was more than ready to crash- but not without making sure Lance was alright, first.

Lance looked at him, wingbones shifting, before nodding. “Yeah…. Actually. Can- can we go somewhere else first? I won’t be long, I just-”

“Of course.” Keith replied, despite himself. “Er, where to?” 

“The bridge.” 

“Alright.”

They walked to the bridge together in silence. Keith couldn’t help but sneak a few glances over towards Lance’s wings, and every time he did, a feeling of guilt and sadness clenched in his gut. But he pushed it down, continuing to walk with him, for the sake of being supportive. That was a key pillar to being a good friend, right?”

He watched as Lance walked out onto it, sitting down in front of the gigantic window that showed off all the stars of the galaxy. Keith hadn't really had time to pay attention to the stars, but he could look at them now. When was the time when these stars held such a source of wonder and hope for him? The hope of becoming a good pilot, going to space. What were they to him now? He didn’t know.

“Can I-” Keith started, his voice fading out near the end.

“Yeah, come sit with me,” Lance murmured, scooting over a little.

Keith sat. He looked out at the stars, wondering how long Lance wanted to sit there for. He’d stay with him all night if he needed to.

“Sorry, I just- I look out at the stars, whenever I feel homesick or sad. I just want a couple of minutes, and then we can head back,” Lance muttered, hands wringing themselves out in his lap.

“Take as much time as you need, Lance,” Keith said with a shrug, “I got nowhere to be.”

Lance nodded, a grateful look spreading across his face.

A pause- Keith listened to the hum of the ship and Lance’s breathing. 

“My mom- what would she think?” Lance’s voice whispered. His eyebrows were knitted together, a sense of sadness coming from the boy.  “It’s like… my wings… what I’ve done to myself, what’s going on?I can’t help but think that she’d be disappointed in me.” He was quiet, voice cracking. Keith felt his stomach twinge. He watched Lance’s lower lip quiver, a tear tracking down his already stained cheeks. “I’m a failure.” 

Keith’s eyes widened for a moment, before he hastily shuffled forward, a hand gripping Lance’s.

“You’re not a failure Lance- you’re one of the best members on the team. You care about us so much, you always put others first, above you. I think… I think your mother would be so,  _ so  _ proud of you Lance. She’d be worried about you, yes, but I think that she’d be blown away.”

He could feel his cheeks flush, as he realized how close he was gotten, pulling back, before turning to face the stars again. “At least, that’s what I think.” He mumbled, folding his knees up into his chest, wings splayed out behind him. 

“Keith.”

“Y-yeah?” 

“You really are a good friend.” 

Keith looked over to Lance, seeing the genuine of his words reflect in his eyes, the starlight sparkling off of his skin. He realized, right then and there, even if his wings were bare and bandaged, even if he had dark circles under his eyes and blood in his fingernails, that Lance was beautiful.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi!!!! It's here!!! The update!!! 
> 
> I know it's been a month, and I'm really grateful to you guys for being so kind and patient! I just wanted to say, that while my posting might be more spaced out now, I won't be abandoning this fic! I have full intentions on finishing it. Just please keep that in mind- I love all of you guys, and I don't want to let you down! 
> 
> That being said, how did you guys like this chapter? It was really emotional. I decided to add in Shiro just to get his perspective on everything, because I feel like he would be really guilty and try to blame everything on him. I don't want him to solely be 'that shiro that yells at lance and then never gets better' because I feel like he's so much more dynamic than that and would truly try to better himself when he figured out how his actions were affecting Lance. I also love shiro sooo lol 
> 
> Thank you all so much!!


	9. In The Days After

“Lance?” Keith’s voice called out to him, a little muffled from behind his door. He sat up, rubbing his eyes a bit, the room around him dark. Even though they’d been in space for however many months (he had stopped counting,) Lance still found it hard to wake up. It was something about the lack of natural light- no windows, no sunshine to peak in through his windows. It threw his schedule off, made his internal clock mess up. That, on top of all his anxiety and whatever else was wrong with him, left him sleeping in, being stuck in bed, or hardly getting any sleep at all.

“Hey buddy? Can I come in?” Lance wasn’t used to the hesitancy in Keith’s voice, or the softness either.

“Yeah.”

What was this thing between them? This… relationship, this friendship. A couple months ago? They were rivals, bickering and fighting, but now it was totally different. Lance wondered what it would be like if nothing had changed between them, if they had never gone on that mission together, and none of the bad stuff had ever happened.

Would Keith still be checking on him like this? No, probably not.

Lance sighed, signalling for the light to turn on, just as Keith walked in through the door. He was holding a tray, a bowl of green goop in it, coupled with a glass of water. “Sorry, you missed breakfast.”

Well, he expected it. The last couple of days had been... hard on him.

“But I brought this for you- you should eat. Um- Coran also gave me this, as well,” he grabbed a small tin cylinder from his pocket. “He said it was a salve for your wings, so the feathers will grow back nice. Uh. If you need any help, or something putting it on, don’t hesitate to ask me, I can help, or, er I can get Hunk or Coran to help, or I can just leave you alone, whatever you want buddy,” the words left Keith breathlessly, his face growing redder and redder.  “And I’m rambling, aren’t I?”

A small smile slipped across Lance’s lips as he took the tray and tin from him, sitting up farther on his bed.  “Thanks, Keith. I guess I really needed the sleep, huh? But even so, sleeping in isn’t really a surprise, how many times has Shiro had to barge in to wake me for training?”

“You don’t know how many times he’s done that to me when I was in the Garrison,” Keith replied, flashing him a smile back. “One time he had to dump a cup of water on my head just to get me up!”

“Really? You don’t really seem like the type of person to sleep in at all; you’re up at the crack of dawn training all the time.”

“Yeah, well… it was different when I was still in the Garrison. I only started training really hard and getting up when I was kicked out, y’know, with Shiro gone and all.. I guess it was a coping mechanism.”

“Oh… right,” Lance knew about Keith getting kicked out; Iverson had always pushed it into his face that he had only made it into the program, because Keith had left. After Shiro had crashed, and everything had happened, and Lance had figured out how Keith had lived, he always wondered how he had coped- alone, in a shack in the desert.

“Anyways, yeah.. Uh, I’ll leave you be, so I’m not bugging you or anything, um, there’s a team meeting in an hour  in the command room ‘cuz Allura is going to be calling us, but… yeah. I guess, see-you..” Lance watched as Keith straightened, his face uncharacteristically red, wings twitching like there was no tomorrow; it was rare to see Keith flustered like this. Was it because of him?

Well, of course it was- everything that had happened a few nights ago was awful and awkward no matter the person. But Keith was nice. He was… soothing in a way and blunt and honest. They had been rivals, but Lance… he could see that there were more layers to the boy than just an arrogant fighter pilot.  

“Hey Keith, w-wait.” Keith stopped, his body going rigid. Lance had to take a moment to compose himself, before quietly asking: “do you think you could stay? I hate eating alone… and, I guess it would be good to take you up on that offer of helping me. It’s kinda obvious I can’t take care of my wings all that great right now,” the last tone of his sentence grew bitter, his wings still fresh with pain and heart still full of anxieties.

What did Keith think of him? If he didn’t hate the colour of his wings, did he hate how they looked now, so bare and desolate and disgusting? Lance could barely look at them in the mirror, so how would everyone else cope staring at them all the time?

“Of course. If you want, I can put this stuff on while you’re eating? Doesn’t smell too bad, I kind of checked because, y’know, Coran does some pretty weird things. But! It’s good! It’s all good!” Keith rambling brought Lance out of his dark thoughts, the awkwardness and nervousness of his words endearing, and slightly amusing. Lance was used to seeing Keith so stoic and serious, so it was a bit of a treat to see him like this, despite the causes.

“Yeah, go ahead buddy,” Lance replied, scooting forward a bit on his bed so Keith could fit behind him. “‘Guess I’ll just chow down while you work.”

Keith nodded, slipping in behind Lance, gently taking the tin and spreading out the boy’s wings. Lance stiffened a bit at the touch, his wings sensitive and agitated, but he focused on staying still and keeping dark thoughts out of his head. Life was a disaster recently. The whole mission- it was a day he wanted to erase completely from his mind… everything. All of it. All the dead Ulliflings he couldn’t save, getting caught and having to scream at Hunk and Pidge to look away, the terror he felt as he thought he was going to die at the hands of some foreign creatures that only wanted his feathers; the shame he felt when his secret had finally been revealed.

The food Lance had just shoved into his mouth suddenly felt like sand in his mouth, and he struggled to swallow, feeling an awful feeling in the pit of his stomach as the events from the day prior struck through him.

The only thing that kept him grounded, was the soft hands tentatively unwrapping his wings, feather-light fingertips soothing a calming salve over the agitated skin. Keith was there with him; he was helping him, supporting him, even though he knew his secret. Even though he had gone through worse things than Lance, had faced unimaginable scenes before coming to his rescue.

Lance bit his lip, before putting some more goo on his spoon and forcing it into his mouth, chewing it with a quiet, burning resolve; if Keith still went on, then so could he.

Right?

* * *

  


Keith watched Lance from behind him, his eartips still burning a bit from being so close to the boy. He couldn’t help but stare at the back of Lance’s neck as he ate; it strained and relaxed, yet looked really… elegant. The skin was really smooth- no wait! He needed to focus at the task at hand! Forcing his eyes on the two wing bones in front of them, Keith gently smoothed the salve across them. It was strange seeing Lance’s wings without his feathers, and it evoked a deep sadness within him, but it didn’t disgust Keith in the slightest; it served as a reminder that he knew Lance needed to get better, and that he was going to work his harder to help him get better, and hold the other teammates accountable because Keith had promised it to himself  Lance deserved the support that he had lacked for so many months, and Keith was going to try his damned hardest to make it up to him!

It felt like Keith had been there for forever, quietly working while his determination grew and steely resolve grew more solid; Lance was his friend, his first friend other than Shiro and he was going to work his damned hardest to make sure he was a good friend.

A part of the flock.

Lance shifted from underneath Keith, his wings twitching as he reached forward to grab his drink. Keith was relieved to see that he was eating, and had finished his meal; he wasn’t sure how Lance would react to anything in the days to come after the incident, but it seemed like he was doing alright for the time being. A close eye and maybe a lot of hugs from Hunk were in order, but… oh who was he kidding! He had no idea what he was doing! Being ‘supportive’ wasn’t really Keith’s thing, considering he never really had anybody to support until now! (Shiro was always the one supporting him- Keith had been too much of a mess to reciprocate much of anything else back)

Was he doing things right? How do you interact with someone who hated themselves, who hated their wings? How do you comfort them after all they’ve been through- when you’ve been through it right beside them?!

Keith pushed down those feelings, swallowing hard as he did up the last bandage. He didn’t know how to do these things. But he would learn.

“Are you finished?” Lance broke the silence, his voice quiet and a little bit meek.

“Yeah,” Keith replied, gently tucking in the final bits of bandage, before scooting off the bed, and standing up.

“How… how are they? My wings?” Lance looked up at him, blue eyes holding a deep emotion in them- one Keith simultaneously understood yet didn’t quite get.

“They’re… Coran said with the salve, your feathers should be back within about 56 quintents, so two months. The salve seemed to, er, smooth your skin? It was kind of irritated, but after I put it on, it looked better. Your wings will get better Lance. And they’ll look beautiful when the feathers are back. They’re beautiful even now.” Keith could feel his face go a bit red at his words, but he meant them.

Lance managed a small smile at him, “thanks, buddy.”

“No need to thank me if it’s true.” Keith sucked in a breath, trying to will his face to go back to it’s normal colour. (Seriously?! Why was he blushing so much now?! He hadn’t blushed in years- yet now, it all of a sudden just makes an appearance?!) “But do you want to head down to go see what Allura has to say? You can come with me if you want, but no pressure. Might be nice to take the opportunity to sleep more, if you want.”

“Um, I’ll come with you. I want to see Hunk anyways, but, uh, I just have to get changed and brush my teeth and stuff, so can you wait like 5 minutes? I won’t take that long.”

“Yeah, I’ll wait outside.”

 “Thanks.”

Keith snuck a glance of Lance as he was leaving, a bit of worry panging through him.

He hoped with all his might that he would actually be alright.

* * *

 

Lance didn’t look at himself in the mirror once when he brushed his teeth and washed his face, for fear that he would see a glimpse of his bare wings and have a meltdown. But despite that, he got through it, and quickly changed in enough time to meet Keith outside to go see Allura’s call.

She had gone to see the king on the planet -he didn’t even want to think about its name,- which was worrying, so he figured it would be better to see it than going back to sleep. Plus, walking with Keith was… nice. Even if the grey-feathered boy kept sending him worried glances every now and then.

Well, Lance thought with a sigh, it was too be expected. He wasn’t fine. In fact, so many things were wrong, he couldn’t even begin to list them, but… he couldn’t change them. Not all of them, anyways; it was something to live with. His breakdown… oh god, he didn’t even want to think about it, but yet it seemed stuck to him, always whispering in his mind. Perhaps it would always be like that.

Keith’s wing brushed against Lance’s shoulder, nudging him quietly out of this thoughts. They were approaching the command room, it’s doors open, the rest of the Paladins in sight.

It was almost a relief to see Hunk, his large stature warm and inviting, brown eyes and wings the same colour, rich as coffee. He turned to see Keith and Lance, a large smile forming on his cheeks (and tears welling in his eyes).

“Lance my man! You came- that’s great.” He spread out his arms for a hug, which Lance gratefully supplied, wrapping his smaller limbs around the boy’s larger frame. Hunk was always warm, and always gave good hugs. He always made Lance feel a bit better, even if now, his hugs were different because he was aware of Lance’s hurting wings.

“Good to see you up, Lance,” Shiro said, placing a slightly hesitant hand on his shoulder, a genuine smile settling across his face. Lance could see guilt in his eyes, and an awkwardness he couldn’t describe.  

There _was_ an awkwardness in the room- from Hunk’s different hugs, to Shiro’s hesitancy, to Pidge’s silence. It was different, and Lance didn’t like it. He wanted everybody to forget last nice, to cast it away and resume their regular personalities; a routine amount of characteristics and reactions Lance could use to ground himself.

But the change was his own fault, and there was nothing he could do to fix it.

“Ahah! I found the cord! Why, it was stuck behind all these other cords that the mice must have moved around- we’re lucky I even found it at all, why that paneling is more messed up than a weblum’s behind! ” Coran exclaimed, jumping up from his spot hidden away by one of the pilot’s chairs. He looked as cheery as ever, his voice crisp and accented as always.

A small smile played on Lance’s lips; at least one person hadn’t changed.

“I met a weblum once- my, what a story to tell! I was in the height of my rebellious phase, and you know teenagers, pheromones everywhere, why I would-”

Shiro cleared his throat, arms folding themselves against his chest, as he stared pointedly at where Allura should be popping up. “I think we should turn on the screen now, Coran. Allura should be calling any moment, no?”

“Oh, yes! Here,” he pushed a button, before stepping back and straightening himself out.

The screen turned on, familiar colours of the Altean’s light teal playing out in front of him. All of a sudden, the image of Allura popped up, her hair as neat as always, but there were dark circles under her eyes, as though she hadn’t gotten very much sleep. Actually, it was very likely, considering everything that had happened; Lance felt a pang of guilt, as he realized he was very likely part of her problem.

“Greetings, Coran, Paladins,” she stifled a yawn, straightening herself out. “I have been negotiating with the king for several vargas, with seemingly no result until just recently. After being invited, I thought of all the issues I could bring up to them- obviously, the looming threat of the galra, and how our alliance may help them, but given our… recent actions on their planet, negotiations have been… dismal at best. It is…” Her lips pursed, as she seemingly thought for words, “ difficult to see eye to eye with the king in terms of their culture and habits.” A deep breath. “But! None the less- we have come to a verdict! They shall ally with us and we shall offer them protection from the galra, provided that they join us in the fight against Zarkon, but...” there was a hesitancy.

Lance noticed Keith shuffling his feet, a dark look flashing across his face. He couldn’t blame him. This planet was shit.

“But what, princess?” Shiro asked, stepping forward a bit.

“The king wishes to see the Paladins in order to secure the alliance- he wishes, to, er, throw a banquet for you and to have to stay at his palace for a few sunlight cycles. Given our recent, circumstances,” her eyes flicked over to Lance, a bit of guilt washing over them, “I haven’t come up with a suitable answer.” She sighed, deeply. “Given their advancements in technology they would be a very good planet to be aligned with, but I am torn; so I must ask for the advice from all of you. Part of me is saying to fulfill the duties of being a part of Voltron, but the other part is telling me to keep us tucked away from this planet for the time being. ”

“I don’t want to go anywhere near that fucking planet again. I don’t want Lance going there either. They’re messed up!” Pidge was the first to respond, her little cream wings fluffed up in anger.

Allura sighed, nodding, “yes, I quite understand…”

“I know we all hate this planet, trust me, I do too… but we have to think about the sake of Voltron- if Allura says they would be good allies, then maybe we should think about it,” Shiro spoke up, his voice a bit conflicted.

Lance turned his head to Keith, whose wingtips were trembling, and fists were curled. “No. The answer is fuck no. Not ever.”

Hunk remained quiet, as he pressed himself against Lance, wing tucking over him protectively.

How was Lance supposed to feel about this? Honestly- he felt conflicted. His emotions were still so raw, from everything, he still didn’t know what was going on, and he still felt… lost, and broken, but… He was a Paladin. He had a duty- to protect the universe, to make sure his family would never have to see an enemy Galra ship in their life. If an alliance with this planet would be good, despite their… cultural differences, then maybe….

“I think Shiro’s right. We should do it. You guys… don’t need to worry about me. I’ll be.. I’ll be fine.” Lance spoke up, his voice only wavering a little bit. Hunk’s wing tightened around him.

Lance could feel Keith’s gaze bearing down on him, almost burning a hole through his shirt; he was a bit frightened to look, but when he did, he was surprised to see more hurt and sadness running through the boy’s eyes then anger.

“Of course we’re going to worry about you, you idiot!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's another update! I hope you guys liked it- I hope things aren't moving too fast with Lance's recovery. Obviously he's not 'perfectly okay' right now, but I kind of wanted to capture a bit of realism to it (in my experience) in the way of how sometimes there's an awkwardness almost to things, and wanting to go back to how things were? Lance isn't okay- he is still messed up and hurt and whatnot but i think he's starting to grasp onto that bit of healing and support that will help him out in the end (but wait?! Isn't he going back to the planet that fucked him over so much?! yes, yes he is i'm sorry) 
> 
> Also I just love writing awkward keith who blushes all the time and can't quite figure out why. (HINT HE HAS A CRUSH) And I don't know if it's such a really big part of this chapter, but I love writing about Hunk and his warmth and loving and care. He's honestly such a great character and I love him. 
> 
> Okay! Rambling over! I hope you guys really liked this chapter, and I hope you all have a Happy Easter!


	10. The Prince

Pidge watched from the sidelines as Keith and Lance fought with each other, a deep frown on her face. She didn’t like this, this whole business about going back to  _ that planet.  _ The shitty one. Not one bit of her wanted to step foot on it again, especially knowing that Lance would be coming with them, but it seemed as though he was pretty set in stone on going with them. Going was a part of being a team member of Voltron, but even there, there were limits; wasn’t this one of them? 

Her hands folded into her armpits, as a scowl creeped across her face, Keith’s and Lance’s arguing growing larger and larger. Well, at least one thing was reverting back to normal. Though the fighting between the two of them was never new, Pidge noticed that something was different; these weren’t petty excuses or arguments, but something a bit more… real. Emotional, especially on Keith’s part.

Pidge snorted, her eyes narrowing from behind her brother’s glasses. Had the incident changed them? Well, duh, it changed everybody- but what was it with those two that had vastly evolved? Some sort of bond? Why was there a look in Keith’s eyes that suggested he wasn’t just annoyed by Lance, but actually concerned about his well being? Why was there a softness, a genuine worry-  why had he been glued to Lance ever since the incident?

Oh wait.

Despite her annoyance and frustration towards the whole situation, a smile tugged up on her lips, crooked and all-knowing.

She was still pissed Lance was coming, though.  

* * *

 

Lance mumbled angrily to himself as he packed a bag for himself, getting ready for the mission. They were going to be staying for a few days, invited by the king himself, to negotiate and have a tour of the castle. Lance wanted to go. He wanted to make sure he was a part of Voltron, a helper, and not just some stupid weight dragging them down… but, the Uilffling’s word’s still stuck in his mind, 

_ "An offering to the king and goddess,” _

The king was the one these “pure” feathers were going to, he had to be involved in everything somehow. Lance had a bad feeling about it, and he knew everyone else did too, but as Allura had said, they might prove themselves to be worthy allies. And if not, maybe they could get to the bottom to whatever was happening. At least, that’s why Lance was going. He didn’t give a single flying fuck over whether not this planet would be their ally. He wanted nothing to do with it, but he knew that there were victims involved that needed Voltron’s help. Keith shouldn’t of fought him so much on it.

Neatly folding his clothes and placing his skin care products into the bag, Lance took great care to make sure they were secure, and not going to go all over the place. He was neat by nature, or at least, his Mama had drilled the whole “cleanliness is next to godliness,” thing into his head. God, he missed her voice. And her hugs. And her anything.

No. 

Lance shook his head, sighing a bit. This wasn't at the time to be thinking about his Mama. He needed to stay focused, and ready for anything; especially now that he couldn’t fly.  There was a knock at his door, making him stop and straighten. “Yeah?” 

“Lance, it’s me, can I come in?” It was a bit surprising to hear Shiro’s voice, but Lance stepped over to open his door anyways.

“Hey… what’s up buddy?” Lance asked, his voice a bit awkward.  (like it almost always was these days when talking to Shiro)

“I wanted to talk to you… about going on this mission,” Shiro started, stepping in.

“I’m going to be fine, Shiro!” Lance snapped, bare wings flaring out, feeling agitation spread through him with impressive speeds. “I already spent an hour arguing about me going with Keith, I’m not going to do it with you too! I’m. Going.”

Shiro took a step back, his hands rising as a give in. “I know, I know. I’m not going to try and stop you.” His hands lowered, “I just… want to make sure you’re safe, considering…the condition of your wings.”

His wings? Did he mean the bare, ugly things they were? Did he mean the white that they had grown, and how it was a disgrace on Earth, and something that almost got him killed on Uilf? What ‘truly’ was the condition of his wings?  

Lance nodded his head.

“Okay. My wings. I can’t fly. How are we ensuring my safety?”

“Keith’s going to be your partner.”

What now? Why did he need a partner- was he so weak, that he couldn’t even be trusted to handle himself alone for more than 5 minutes?! Maybe Lance was still a little bitter from their previous fight. He hated feeling weak- hated feeling like he dragged down the team . 

“Why does Keith need to be my partner? I don’t need to be protected all the time, Shiro.” Lance muttered, turning his back to continue packing- something to keep his hands busy.

“Because he cares about you Lance, you saw the way he was concerned about you; he just wants to make sure you’ll be safe.” The man reasoned, his best dad voice making its way out.

“I don’t need to be babysat! I can handle myself!”

“Look, Lance, I’m going to tell you a secret about Keith, that you have to promise not to spread, or else he’ll have my neck.”

Lance couldn’t say he wasn’t a little interested in what Keith’s secret was, so he stayed quiet, waiting for the answer.

“He’s overprotective, and a little possessive of his friends. People he cares about- you should have seen him when we were in the Garrison, and he had found out I was going to Kerberos. Didn’t want to let me go… and, I was pronounced dead after. I think it made it worse, and now that you two have formed a bond, he’s scared of losing it, just like he had lost ours at one point in time.” 

Lance was quiet for a moment, Shiro’s words hitting deep. His eyebrows furrowed before a deep sigh took over him. Shiro was right, what he said made sense.

“I hadn’t thought of it in that way… and I guess he’s got every right for not wanting me to go to the planet, especially after what happened.”

Yeah, the memories were still fresh- pain still sharp, wings still bare.

“But… I just don’t want to be useless. I… I need to help, it’s like, if I sit here and do nothing, all I can think about is what happened, and about my wings, and about the, w-white.” Lance’s voice cracked on his last few words, and he looked away, swallowing hard. He felt a hand on his shoulder.

“I understand. Trauma affects people in many different ways, and trust me, I know from experience that sometimes being busy is the best thing. If the white comes back again, we’ll find a way to cure it. Don’t worry.” Shiro’s words were genuine, as he patted Lance’s shoulder, nodding ever so slightly. “It’ll turn alright in the end. You’re a part of Voltron.”

Lance looked at him and nodded- he  _ was  _ a part of Voltron. This was his mission too.

* * *

Keith felt conflicted, despite the deep scowl on his face as he waited, arms folded for Shiro’s ‘pre game mission speech’ to end. His feathers were fluffed up, indignant. He didn’t want Lance to go on the mission with them. He was obviously in too much danger- that, with his wing colour, and the state of them. It had barely even been a week since the incident! There was no way he was ready to get back to his duties, nonetheless go back to the planet that fucking caused his trauma! Hell, Keith himself felt dread having to travel back to the planet, and he hadn’t even been hurt! The scenes of those dead Uilfflings were still fresh in his mind, still enough to make him shudder at the thought of going back. He couldn’t imagine what Lance was going through.

Which was why they were fighting.

Well, was it fighting? That was why Keith was conflicted- did he want to call it a fight, and scowl and argue with Lance the whole time, while still making sure he doesn’t get hurt, or kidnapped, or whatever that shitty king wanted to do to him? Keith wanted to cling. It was like there was a magnet deep inside of him, that wanted to keep Lance close, keep him safe.  


They were friends. Lance was his second friend. Friends kept each other safe, right? Well, Keith would try his hardest to keep any member of his team safe- he cared for them all, but… what was different? 

He shook his head, sighing in frustration. Whatever! If Lance was going to come on this obviously dangerous mission, then so be it. He’d just have to put up with him making sure he was safe. It was a good friend thing to do, whether Lance liked it or not. 

“And so, we’ll be staying there for about seven quintents, and then we’ll head back to the castle. Coran will keep the castle orbiting around the planet, and ready to pick us up at any time if we need to evacuate. We’ll also each be flying down in our lions, to appease the king. Sounds good everyone?” Shiro finished, standing tall, like the leader he was, in his Paladin uniform.

His dark wings stood out, muscular, and shiny. He must have groomed them before coming to speak to everybody. Keith couldn’t help but smirk- that was such a Shiro thing to do. It was one of his habits, presenting himself perfectly for everybody. To be the perfect leader.

There was a chorus of ‘yes,’ that followed, a little subdued, but loud enough to be heard.

“Alright, everyone to your Lions. The coordinates have already been sent.”

Keith shifted his bag, which was slung off of his shoulder. With one last glance towards Lance, he turned on his heel, and walked towards Red.    
  
He was met with her usual rumble, welcoming her back. It was nice to always be regarded so kindly; it gave Keith that kind of sense of ‘a man’s best friend,’ except instead of a dog, his companion was a sentient gigantic robot lion. Eh, little differences. 

Putting his bag down on the floor, he sat down in her chair and began to start her up, feeling the energy move through her as she fully awoke. In no time, he was shooting off into space, towards Uilf.

The path was fairly easy- no special moves, or complicated turns to take. Keith wished it would be more challenging, to maybe take his mind off of things, but he pushed the urge to blast off away. A simple ride to get to the King’s palace. That was it.

Which was why he was surprised to be getting a comm in.

“Keith?” Huh. It was Lance.  

“Uh yeah, Lance, what’s up?” Was it a private comm? Keith quickly checked, before leaning back in relief. It was.

“Um. I just wanted to say sorry for yelling at you earlier.” Oh shoot. It was going to be an emotional talk. Red’s nudge of encouragement in Keith’s mind was little help to his nerves. 

“It’s… It’s okay Lance. Sorry I yelled too.”    
  
“I just… don’t want to be useless! I know that I would have just gone crazy if I was left on the castle, while you guys were out putting yourselves in danger. I gotta help out the team in some way, even just support is good, right?”  There was a sound in Lance’s voice that Keith didn’t like. 

“What- you’re not useless! You help us all out, Lance. You’re hurt, and this Planet sucks ass, so that’s why I didn’t want you to go… that’s why all of us didn’t want you to go- not because you’re useless. But, your support is good. You’re always a huge help for the team.”  Keith stumbled over his words a little bit, but there was a rumble from Red that sounded pleased.

“... Okay. Well, thanks Keith. Just wanted to apologize. We’re good, right? ”

“We’re good.”

“‘Kay, I’ll see you there. Signing off.”

“See you there.”

Somehow, Red’s haul sounded so silent now, like that lingering feeling you got whenever you hung up after talking to your best friend for hours. Except Keith had only talked to Lance for about a minute.

Emitting a sigh, and running a hand down his face, Keith muttered,

“Focus.”

 

* * *

Lance landed Blue with ease, placing her in between Hunk and Pidge’s Lions as they landing just before him. They were on a large, grassy cliff that overlooked the vast city. The castle itself was grand- huge, and uncanny in it’s sense of looking just like something you’d see in a fairy-tale. 

He still felt a little awkward after his stupid apology comm to Keith, but he was trying his best to push it out of his mind. Now that they were finally on Uilf, he had to be on his toes, keep his senses open. Not be distracted by thoughts, or anything else. This was go time! It was Lance time.

He grabbed his bag, and opened Blue’s doors, strutting out of them with as much confidence as he could muster. Hunk was waiting for him outside, the little twitches in his wings hinting to Lance that he was nervous.

“Hunk! My man! Long time no see!” Lance gave him a fist bump, forcing an easy grin on his face. If his whole team was so nervous to have him on this mission with them, he’d have to be the confident one. Or at least, play the role. Play the “Lancey Lance” role.

Hunk fist bumped him back, still nervous, and a little confused, but willing none-the-less. He smiled back at Lance, turning his head towards Shiro’s Lion, as it landed not far from them. Their leader emerged, clothing bag slung easily over his shoulder.

“Alright team,” Shiro spoke, catching Pidge’s attention not too far away, as she sneakily tried to take some soil samples. “We’ll just wait for Keith to come out of his Lion, and then we’ll go in, as a team. Allura, and the king should be waiting for us.” 

Just as he spoke, Keith opened the doors from his lion, stepping out. His wings still looked agitated, Lance noted, but he no longer had that awful scowl on his face, like he did when they were fighting. They made eye contact, Keith looking straight at him, before Lance looked away, swallowing hard. They were good right? Keith said they were good? 

“Keith! Just on time, come on! They’re waiting for us. Now, I want everyone to remember that, we’re on  _ peaceful  _ terms right now. Keith, that means you.” Shiro chided, leading the way towards two massive wooden doors.

They were wooden, looming with their sheer size. There were engravings on them, so delicate and intricate, Lance thought he could spend all day looking at them. He wondered how long it had taken to make those doors, to create those spirals and leaves, and… feathers.

Lance looked away, instead putting his focus on the crack in between them, and as it started to open, revealing  the large, marble-white entrance in front of them. He felt a little shiver go down his spine, tingles spreading all the way down to his wingtips.

There stood three figures, waiting for them.

Lance immediately recognized Allura, but he felt his heart quicken as he saw the other two as Uilfflings. The taller one’s beak clicked, as he welcomed them in, his beady little eyes dark, and… a little unsettling. His feathers were brightly coloured, a rich red and shining gold. Lance couldn’t help but stiffen as he noticed what was on top of his head- with a sickening realization, he realized the King was wearing a crown of white feathers.

From Allura’s tight, grimacing smile, and the other’s stiff movements, he knew they had realized too. Keith looked downright murderous.

“Welcome, welcome my esteemed guests!” His voice was whistley, like too much air was passing through his throat.

“We are humbled to be here, King.” Shiro spoke, giving a slight bow. He seemed composed, face unreadable.

The smaller one was different. He had the some red and gold hues as the king, and a similar… crown, but his eyes weren’t dark, or beady. They were a clear, crisp grey, piercing as he looked over each member of Voltron. There was something calculating in his eyes, especially as they landed over Lance, glimpsing over towards his back, to the tightly wound bandages over his wings that were just peeking out from behind his shoulder. Something sparked in that Uilflings eyes, before he looked away, back towards the king. 

“I would like to introduce you to my son, Maevan. He is the heir to the crown, after I pass on, and is very intrigued with your cultures, and of course, Voltron.” 

The prince stepped forward, dipping his head whilst puffing up his head feathers that Lance could only guess was their cultural form of formal respect. Maybe. “It is a honour to meet and speak with you, Paladins of Voltron. May we get along, and negotiate good terms of alliance.” 

When he straightened out, back strong and sturdy, wings neatly tucked in, his eyes met with Lance’s. Lance held his gaze for a few seconds, a fleeting sense of confrontation flooding him, before Maevan broke away, nodding curtly to the rest of the group. Still, Lance felt a burn, like somebody was staring at him. 

“Alas, I have duties to attend to, so I shall see you all at dinner.” 

Lance watched as the prince walked away, not quite sure if he was unsettled or not. There was something different; he couldn’t quite place his finger on it. Shifting uncomfortably, tore his gaze away, settling on the King. 

“I will have a servant show you to your rooms, to rest and get refreshed until dinner. After then, we shall negotiate and show you what our planet has to offer.” 

Lance was glad to see the king leave- he got creeps from him. Well, creeps from the king and the prince alike. As he followed the rest, he felt a nudge on his shoulder. It was Keith, catching up to him. The boy’s eyebrows were furrowed- either a look of concern or anger,- and his lips were down-turned ever so slightly. 

“Why were you and the prince staring at each other so much?” Keith’s voice was hushed, accusing.

“I don’t know- he just kept looking at me. Trust me it creeps me out too, dude!” Lance whispered back, a little indignant.

“I don’t like it.” 

“Well, neither do I.”

Lance was lost in thought, walking along with the group, hand idly placed on his bayard, hardly listening to the team’s chatter. He stopped with them, in front of a hallway with 4 doors- 4 rooms. Wait. 4. There was 6…

“Hunk, I’m bunking with you-” Lance started, before getting cut off by Keith.  “We all just agreed that you and I would bunk, and Pidge and Hunk would bunk, and Shiro and Allura would get individual rooms.”

“Wait, what part of ‘we all just agreed,’ means anything if I haven’t said yes?!” Lance spluttered, taken back for a moment.

“You nodded your head yes when I brought it up.Plus, we're partners on this mission, just like how Hunk and Pidge are partners.” Keith replied, deadpanned. 

“Look, I’m sorry Lance. You know I’d love to bunk with you, but Pidge is more comfortable with bunking with me than you or Keith, no offense…” And since it was an unwritten rule that Shiro needed his space while sleeping (PTSD), and Allura was already situated, it left Lance really no choice.

You know what, it was fine. Him and Keith were friends. They had already bunked together once on the shitty planet, so it was more than fine to do it again.

“Alright. Keith and I will bunk, then.”

* * *

 

Keith was relieved that Lance agreed to bunk with him so easily. Some  part of him was glad to keep the boy close- to make sure he was safe, but another part was just… awkward.

Oh well. He was always awkward. 

But… he really wanted to make sure Lance was okay, especially now that that weird prince guy was around. He have Keith the creeps- him, and his father. Their crowns, made of white feathers… he had almost lost it when he had first seen them, almost punched them. Especially with that smug look on the prince’s face… especially after the way he looked at Lance. He remembered how his nails had pushed into the skin of his fist when they made eye contact, and how he just wanted the whole team to just fucking leave and never come back. Something was off, just like it had been in that restaurant. 

Lance’s voice broke Keith away from his thoughts as he pushed open the door to their room.

“You’ve got to be kidding me!”

There was only one bed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's another chapter! I hope you guys liked it!! 
> 
> Sorry for the wait you guys. I'm in the last stretch of this school year, and then I'll be out for the summer! Expect lots and lots of frequent chapters then!! 
> 
> So... that prince guy, hey? What do you guys think of him? I'd like you to know that I based his name off of my favourite name, Maven. I don't know why, but I'm IN LOVE with that name. If any of you have ever role played with me (I use the same user for like everything) you'll fucking know because that's the only character name I ever use lololol 
> 
> I tried to do some relationship development! I feel like Lance and Shiro still have a bit to go in terms, of being in a good leader/mentor relationship, but it's definitely getting there. I don't want to make Shiro seem like the bad guy, I just wanted to being some light to his faults in the previous chapters! 
> 
> Lol, Keith and Lance having to share a bed. I just wanted to do that trope because I love it. I love that awkwardness, it's so cute to me. Also- Keith might be having some feelings that he doesn't quite recognize. He's clingy. and awkward. That's why I love him. 
> 
> I also love Hunk and Pidge. Please yell at me if I don't include them enough. 
> 
> Anyways, I'm rambling. Thank you all for reading and being so patient with me! I love you all! 
> 
> PS. It's like 2:30 AM when i'm posting this, and i'm sick so I'm DEAD lol


	11. Nighttime Affairs

“You’ve got to be kidding me!” Lance exclaimed, wings raised with indignance. “One bed? Keith, buddy… no offense, but ya know, we’re not  _ that  _ close...” His words sputtered out when he looked over to see Keith’s face, shocked, but looking a little… hurt. 

“Yeah, one bed… totally..” Keith replied awkwardly. 

Okay, maybe Lance was overreacting- it was a bed! Just a bed. He’d shared a bed with his siblings countless times, hell, even Hunk and him had shared a bed! It wouldn’t be right for one of them to sleep on the ground, especially in this hell-hole of a place.

“But you know, it shouldn’t be _ too _ bad, right? Right? We’re buds, now. We bonded- we slept in the same ship! Uh… I’m cool if we just share it if you’re cool with it.” Lance could feel himself cringing at his own words as they came out of his mouth. Why the hell was he this damn awkward?! Was it just the stress of being on the planet, or what?! 

“I’m okay with it. It’s probably, uh, safer that way? We’ll have each other’s backs.” Keith noticeably perked up a little, his face not looking so downcast. It made Lance feel bad, like he kicked a puppy or something. Shiro’s words about his protectiveness, and clinging habits came back to mind- was this part of it?

“Right, right. Well, I’m just going to drop my bag off, then maybe we should go to that dinner thing?” Lance questioned, shrugging his shoulders. “We don’t want to be late.” 

“Sounds good to me,” Keith replied, tossing his own bag off to the side- it was noticeably smaller than Lance’s, which presumably had all of his skin-care items in it. 

Lance looked towards the door, a pang of anxiety running through him. He didn’t like this place very much- everything about it gave him the hibbie gibbies. Well, maybe the fact that the person hosting them was the I’m-going-to-capture-all-these-people-with-white-feathers-and-harvest-them-like-animals crazy king, and his son. The son… his eyes were too sharp, too calculating. They dug too much, lingered a little too long.  

Gritting his teeth, Lance pulled his bare wings in tighter, keeping them snug against his back, crossed neatly. Turning to Keith, he sighed, “‘Kay, let’s go.”

 

* * *

Keith had to try his hardest not to scowl at the Prince and King as he and Lance walked into the dining hall, the rest of the team sitting down in front of them. They too looked strained, an uncomfortable silence blanketing the whole room. Well, no shit- this whole thing was crazy, especially with Lance there with them. Stepping a bit closer to the other boy as they neared the table, heading for the two empty chairs, Keith caught the gaze of the prince, the Uilflling’s cold eyes drilling into his own. Calculating. Planning, sizing up- that’s what the prince’s gaze revealed. Keith narrowed his eyes at the prince, before looking away, taking his seat next to Lance’s.

“Oho! It looks as though everybody has arrived, so let us feast, then talk!” The King spoke up, from his position at the head of the table, his son to his right. There was a murmur of agreement, before forks lifted and cutlery clicked against each other. Keith was surprised to see that the utensils were exactly like earth's- forks, spoons, knives, and even chopsticks.

“We have done some research on the human species, and have included the specific tools your species eats with. For the Alteans, we have provided your cutlery as well. It is good to pay respects to each other's cultural differences, no?” The king spoke up, beak clicking as he raised a piece of purplish meat to eat.

Allura looked slightly impressed, as she gazed down at her utensils.  (Weird pieces of silver that twisted and curled- not unlike ones Keith had seen back on ship, but had never used) “That is very respectful of you, your Highness. Thank you.”  

The king, looking pleased with himself, clicked his beak again and continued to eat, gesturing with his wings for everybody else to fill their plates.

Keith narrowed his eyes, tightening his wings up against his back, as the looked around at the table. It had meats, vegetables, little puffs that looked like dumplings, and multiple bowls filled with assorted seeds. Warily, he filled his plate with whatever looked the safest, casting glances towards Lance every once in a while. He looked tense, back straight, face tight as he loaded his own plate.

Everybody ate in relative silence, the air thick enough to cut with a knife. Keith couldn’t help but keep an eye on the prince- the Uilffling kept looking at Lance while he ate. It took everything in Keith’s self-restraint to keep his feathers from bristling, focusing hard on making sure that they laid flat on his wingbones.

After about half an hour, everybody finished, and their plates were taken away. The sun was setting, sending golden rays through the large room. Keith looked around it, taking in it’s details. Again, it was white, mostly marble, with large columns holding up the ceiling. Feathers were engraved throughout, on the cutlery, on the walls, columns, ceilings. All of them were detailed and intricate, amplified by the golden light. They were pretty, yet unsettling. He supposed the only part of the room that he didn’t dislike were the windows- they were huge, the far side of the room composed completely of them. They showed off the landscape, and the city, which didn’t look too bad in the sunset. Keith supposed that maybe in different circumstances, he’d like their situation better. But not now. Not with  _ them. _

The king’s voice broke Keith off from his thoughts as he quickly turned to face him, body tense, ready to lunge if need be. 

“Well, shall we talk?” 

* * *

Lance was exhausted. He could feel his wings drooping a bit on his back, as he and Keith headed back to their room. The discussion with the King and the Prince had lasted a couple of hours- it was mainly just Allura and Shiro talking, which meant that after a while, Lance zoned. He had found himself watching the prince and his movements, trying to get a grasp, or some insight about him. The prince was weird. Odd. His eyes were too piercing. Lance didn’t really get anything out of watching him, but the time had passed, and now he was ready for bed, Keith at his side. He seemed agitated, his wings shifted, ruffling every few moments or so.

“What’s wrong?” Lance asked, his voice low as they made their way to the room.

“This place is shit,” Keith answered, sighing. “And my wings are sore from sitting for so long. They itch.”

“I feel you,” Lance replied, rolling his shoulders. “I hate sitting still for that long, too. It gets boring.”

“This place is creepy.”

“Yep.”

When they reached their door, Keith pushed through, letting Lance in, before locking it. “Just to make sure…”

Lance nodded, “Yeah, don’t want any weirdos getting in, or anything, right?”  

Keith shrugged, taking off his jacket. “Safety first.” Lance sat down on the bed as he watched Keith disappear into the bathroom.

“Ugh, a few more days and then we can get out of here.” Laying down, he looked up at the ceiling, seeing yet more feathers engraved into the fine marble. He felt disgusted, turning to lay on his side. “I wonder how long it’ll be until we can get back to earth?” He muttered to himself, sighing deeply. Soon. Hopefully soon.  

Sitting up, Lance grunted, trying to get those thoughts out of his head. No time to dwell, or sulk. They had a mission ! Looking down at his bag, Lance figured that he could go through it, and sort his stuff again. For a distraction. Pulling it up into his lap, he began his task, before stopping when he heard a muffled “fuck!” coming from the bathroom. 

“Keith? Buddy?” Lance called, setting the bag aside. “You good?” He felt his heart rate rise as scenarios of Keith getting drugged and taken away, and people breaking into their room flashed through his mind.

“Yeah, yeah I’m okay, Lance. Just my w-wings, are giving me some… trouble.” Keith replied, his voice tight. 

Lance let out a sigh of relief, before a prick of interest shot through him. What was going on in there? 

“Your wings? What’s wrong with them?”

“Uh…..”

Okay, that was too much. Curiosity burst through Lance as he stood up, a little grin forming on his face. He walked to the door. “Can I come in? Please?” 

“Ugh.. yeah. Come in.” 

He burst out laughing the moment he saw Keith- and his wings.

They were stuck together, one end of his right wing lodged over his left, long, thick feathers entwined, and knotted. The helpless look on Keith’s face as he tried reaching with his hands to un-stick them was what got Lance. He looked like a 5 year old!

“Buddy,” Lance wheezed.

“Yeah, I know Lance! Are you going to help me, or just keep laughing?!” Keith bit back, his eyebrows furrowing with frustration.

“Okay, okay! Sorry, I just.. It’s funny! Just, come, uh, sit down in front of the bed and I’ll get you all sorted out.”

Keith sighed, but followed him out. Lance had to restrain himself from laughing at his pouty face- nose screwed up and lips down turned as he sat cross-legged in front of the bed. 

“You know, my wings get stuck all the time too. Happens to everybody. Though, uh, I’ve never seen them quite so....knotted.” Lance mumbled, digging through his bag to find some serum that would help the slick Keith’s feathers, which would help to untangle them. 

“Ugh, I don’t know what happened! They were closed for so long, and then I tried to flap them in the bathroom to get rid of the aches, but as soon as I tried to uncurl them, they were like this! I just tried to force them, but it just made it worse.” Keith sounded exasperated.

“Well duh it’s just gonna make things worse! Don’t force things dude. Your feathers are important.” Ouch. How hypocritical of him. There was a weird silence. Lance swallowed hard, before moving on. “The feathers probably got knotted together from you rustling them when sitting down, and then trying to flap them that hard just… made everything like that. I can fix it though, don’t worry.”

Keith sighed, and nodded, leaning his head forward to rest it on his hand. “Alright.”

Lance set to work, his nimble fingers gently rubbing the serum in, and untangling Keith’s feathers. He worked at the knots, being careful not to pull too much, or cause him any pain. Within ten or so minutes, he got them unstuck, and gently guided his right wing off of the left.

“There. Done.”

“Thanks. But, um…” Keith started, voice trailing off awkwardly.

“What, buddy?”

“Can you, uh, groom the rest of them for me? I mean, you’re really good at it, and uh,...” 

Lance perked up a bit, considering his request…. Despite all that had happened, he still enjoyed grooming. It was still relaxing for him.  “Sure, Keith.”

Setting to work, Lance doused his hands in the oil again, before starting to gently smooth Keith’s feathers back into place, re-aligning them, and making sure they were coated in the oil. Lance took his time, making sure to go over each feather. He heard Keith sigh, and felt him relaxing, the tension leaving from the boy’s shoulders.

It took a bit, but once Lance was done, he found himself idly running his fingers through Keith’s feathers, feeling the soft velvet of them. Drawing in a breath, he took his hand away, placing it on the bed. “Okay, I’m finished. I’m beat- I’m just gonna wash my face and brush my teeth and stuff, and then I’m going to hit the hay.” Silence. “Keith? Keith?”

Leaning forward, Lance looked at Keith, a little smile forming across his face when he saw that he was actually asleep. “Keith, buddy. Wake up.” He gave him a little poke, watching as his eyes blinked open. “Huh, what!” Keith tensed, looking around wildly, “what’s happened, what’s wrong?!”

“Nothing! Nothing!” Lance held up his hands, in a mock defense. “You just fell asleep on the floor. Get into bed.”

“Oh,” Keith flushed, his cheeks tinged pink. “Uh, are you sure- I can sleep on the floor if you don’t…”

“Don’t be stupid!” Lance snapped, “I’m not letting you sleep on the floor. Get into bed.”

With that, he grabbed his bag and slipped into the bathroom, firmly shutting the door behind him.

When Lance looked into the mirror, his cheeks were pink. Why the fuck were his cheeks pink! Grabbing his face stuff, he turned on the water and began scrubbing at his skin, (though, still being nice to it, because, well, he’s not fucking his skin routine up!) willing his blush to go away. 

To be honest, Keith looked… he looked nice when he was asleep. Peaceful- younger, perhaps. Like there wasn’t a care in the world, like he was free of all worries… Lance wouldn’t dare say he looked cute, but he looked… nice.

Lance finished up his skincare routine, making sure to tone and moisturize, before quickly unwrapping his wings, putting the salve on, and re-wrapping them. He didn’t like looking at them unwrapped because of the sinking feeling in his stomach, so he tried his best just to get it done. With a final sigh, and a glance at himself in the mirror, Lance slipped out, walking back into the main room.

Keith was passed out on the bed, his wings tucked into his back as he laid on his side. He wasn’t even under the covers.

With a shake of his head, Lance turned off the light, double checking that the door was locked, before clambering his way into the bed, making sure to stay strictly on his side.  

“Okay Keith, I don’t have extra pillows to make a pillow wall, so just stay on your side, and I’ll stay on mine.” 

“Mmmfh.”

“Goodnight.”

“Mgffhh.”

For once, he fell asleep quickly.

 

* * *

Lance blinked open his eyes. He had to pee. Ughh, he had finally fallen asleep easily! Why did his bladder have to ruin everything?!

Wait a second.

There was a weight on Lance’s body- something nuzzled in the crook of his neck, something draped across his waist, tangled up with his feet. He felt his heart jumpstart, and a flush sweep across his face and neck.  


Keith. It was Keith. 

Soft hair tickled Lance’s cheek as he registered that it was, in fact, Keith, his rival, (and new found friend) cuddled up against him. Soft breaths breezed across Lance’s throat, which made him shiver. Keith’s leg was thrown over his waist, feet twisted up with his own., one hand gently gripping Lance’s shirt, the other laying up, above their heads.  

How did this happen? 

Lance tried not to choke on his own spit, as he looked down at Keith, the boy’s sleeping expression as carefree as ever. Keith would have been the last person for Lance to peg as a ‘cuddler.’ There was a little bit of drool on Lance’s pillow, right where Keith was sleeping.

He really had to pee.

Biting his lip, Lance carefully sat up, wings beneath him aching a bit from him not moving during his sleep. Keith groaned, and clutched his shirt harder, burying deeper into Lance’s side. 

“C’mon Keith! I’ve gotta get up,” Lance whispered, his voice cracking. He swore his heart was bound to burst right out of his chest- what was he so flustered for?! 

Reaching forward, Lance grasped Keith’s hand, working his shirt out of the boy’s fingers. Gently placing it next to him, Lance wiggled his way out of Keith’s grasp, squirming out of the bed the best he could, without waking Keith up.

He did not want Keith to wake up.

How fucking awkward would it be?! Keith would get mad, he would get flustered and blame it all on him, and then he would feel even  _ more  _ awkward, and then there would be a fight, and everything would be fucking ruined. No, no, Lance would just pretend it never happened, (though the image of Keith cuddling him would probably never leave his mind) ignore the drool, and gently push him over once he got back into bed. No biggie. Nothing wrong!

Taking in a sharp breath, Lance got to his feet, quickly walking into the bathroom to do his business. When he was finished, he caught a glance of himself in the mirror while washing his hands. Oh god, Lance had never seen his face so red before.

There was a bit of drool on his shirt. Keith had cuddled him so much that he had drooled on his shirt. He flushed red again, the tips of his ears perfect little scarlet rosebuds.

Why was this so embarrassing?! Keith and him were friends- friends sometimes cuddled! Hunk and him cuddled, (a small part of him reminded him that they never drooled on each other though) so like, it was perfectly fine? 

Except Keith didn’t know that he cuddled Lance. Keith was asleep, which was good. Which meant Lance was the only one who had to deal with racing heartbeats and scarlet faces. 

Oh god. He didn’t  _ like  _ Keith, did he? No way! Nope, nope. Not happening. He was shutting  _ that _ one down.Why the fuck did he even think that? Of course he didn’t like Keith. Lance was a ladies guy! Okay, he had that one crush on a guy back in the Garrison, but like! He was mostly a ladies guy. Maybe a bit of a guys guy- but that didn’t mean he liked Keith! Keith and him were rivals! Friends at best! Nothing more than two dudes who got under each other’s skin, and like, saved each other from peril. Nothing more than that.

Grumbling to himself, he splashed a bit of cold water on his face, letting the cool droplets drip down his neck and onto his chest. There wasn’t time for crushes in space. Sure, he used to flirt with Allura, but that was just him being stupid. Lance couldn’t have any actual  _ romantic interests _ in space. Nope. None. Especially not with his wings the way that they were. 

Biting his lip he turned around, turning off the bathroom light and heading through the door. He was just about to climb back into bed and gently nudge Keith over, when he heard a knock. It was faint- not loud enough to wake Keith, but loud enough for Lance to hear.

“What the, who’s knocking at this hour. Is it Hunk?” Lance muttered to himself, approaching it, and unlocking it.

“Hunk, what’s up- what’s wrong,” Lance started as he opened it, “Oomf!”

Something covered his mouth, and a hand yanked him through, the door shutting behind him.

“What the-”

He was pulled away, before everything went dark.  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Keith is the clingy one (; 
> 
> HAPPY CANADA DAY! (belated lol) AND HAPPY EARLY FOURTH OF JULY (America day? Like do you guys just call it The fourth of July or like?) 
> 
> Schools out!!!!!! I finished my first Diploma !!!! (I took one early, so I'm not graduated just yet!) So now I can write! 
> 
> I am going on vacation for most of July though, probably without internet, so I'm sorry about that, but! There's still August !
> 
> Anyways, I hope you guys liked this chapter (; (; I did some more bonding with Lance and Keith, (that's why I kept interactions mostly between them) and Lance is now denying something (; (; (; I hope you guys liked my take at the "one bed two people" trope! I find it cute, really, hahhahahaha. 
> 
> Pls don't kill me because I left yall on a cliff hanger again- they're what I do best! 
> 
> Thanks, bye!
> 
> ALSO THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR TEN THOUSAND READS THATS AMAZING AND I LOVE ALL OF YOU!


	12. A Hidden Meeting

Something cool was being rubbed on Lance’s wings. He could feel the touches against them, as the darkness slowly began to ebb away from his head. Where was he? What was going on? Lance could feel his heartbeat pick up as he grew more and more aware of his surroundings. Dread dropped heavy in his stomach, panic setting in as flashes of what had happened in that dungeon crossed past his mind.

No.

No.

It couldn’t be happening again.

His fingers twitched as he tried to raise his head, panting. The room was dark, but a candle, or some sort of fire gave it warmth; he could see shadows dancing across the walls. 

“Your highness, I believe the Blue Paladin has arisen. He seems to be uncomfortable. Should I stop applying the medication on his wings? He should be coming out of it fairly quickly, and the medication works it’s best when the person stays completely still.” A calm voice, strong steady. Like the hands that had been touching his wings. Lance felt his back muscles clench.

“Yes, I believe that would be best. I don’t want to alarm him too much; thank you, Gilth.”

Lance knew that voice. A shiver went down his spine- it was the prince.

  
The hands left his wings, and footsteps approached him. Lance tried to lift his head, but whatever they had drugged him with still hadn’t worn off completely.

A body adorned with richly coloured silks, and crimson red and gold feathers stood in front of him. It leaned down, and piercing grey eyes met his own.

“I’m sorry to have had to do that to you, Lance.”

 

* * *

 

The prince looked down at Lance, his eyes narrowed. The paladin was slowly pressing himself up against the wall, eyes wide, like a terrified animal. His bare wings were flared, despite having no feathers to spread. Yes, the sedative had worn out, that was for certain, but the prince was confident that he could calm the boy down without having to force it.

He had come so close- finding this boy, _he_ was the answer. Another species that could produce white feathers. A _human_ , who hadn’t succumbed to the blight that such whiteness brought. If sources were to be true, his feathers had started turning weeks ago before they were plucked, and yet he showed no signs of the affects.

This human was it.

He was the cure.

* * *

 

Keith felt cold, which was unusual for his normally burning hot body temperature. He groaned, body searching for whatever warmth it was missing, before his eyes shot open, face turning scarlet. He was subconsciously searching for _Lance_. And he was on the wrong side of the bed.

Where was Lance?

Sitting up, Keith rubbed his eyes, wings stretching out behind him. He couldn’t help but feel tense, as his eyes scanned across the dark room, listening and watching for any intruders. He knew that Lance was probably just in the bathroom, (keith kept the lights off when he went too- he always felt like he couldn’t fall back asleep after being under something so bright) but after a few minutes of not hearing anything, he called out.

“Lance?”

What if Lance was just in the bathroom? What if Keith was just being a creepy, overprotective stalker? The tips of his ears burned as he thought of that humiliation, but when no call came back, his body went rigid, feathers tightening.

“Lance?!” He tried a bit louder.

Nothing.

Keith got up to his feet, walking slowly over to the bathroom, _fuck._ The door was open.

Lance wasn’t there. The bathroom was empty, pristine and empty.

Wings snapping shut against Keith’s back, he turned on his heel, rushing for the door. If Lance was kidnapped… if he was gone- no. Maybe he felt uncomfortable, and just went to go sleep with Pidge and Hunk? Or Shiro, (unlikely) or Allura (please god no)? Keith yanked open the door, quickly walking down the hallway. He found Pidge’s and Hunk’s room, rapping on the door.

“ Open up!”

He rapped again.

There was a few thumps, and some cursed behind the door, before it opened, Pidge staring at him with her hair all over the place, and plain murder written across her face.

“What. The FUCK do you want, Keith?”

“Is Lance in there?” Keith replied breathlessly, craning his neck above her, to try and get a view.

“No? Why would he be in here, I thought he was bunking with you?”

“Lance isn’t in my room. We fell asleep, and then I woke up and we was gone?”

“Pidge, what’s going on?” Hunk muttered, coming up to the door. His wings were drooping, feather trips dragging across the ground. “Oh, Keith. What’s wrong?”

“Lance isn’t in my room.”

“Keith, he probably went to go beg Allura for some booty call, or something.” Keith felt his stomach drop- it seemed as though his inhibitions were right.

“Come on, Pidge, you know Allura would never accept something like that… where do you think he went?” Hunk’s voice sounded worried, the sleep wiping away from his face.

“Do you think they’re after him?! Have they taken him away somewhere, or something? Oh god.”

Pidge’s previously annoyed look disappeared off of her face as the sleep grumpiness faded away, anxiety taking its place. She knew what kind of planet they were on.  “Oh no.”

Keith drew in a tight breath, pushing forward into their room, pulling the door quietly shut behind him. “That was what I was scared of.”

“What are we going to do?” Hunk whispered, his eyes wide, wings now alert.

Keith stared at him, thinking for a moment: his mind blanked.

“I know what we have to do,” Pidge whispered, her brown eyes hardened. “Listen to me, okay? I’m going to find a control room to see if I can hack into their system and look through their cameras and systems to see if I can find any footage of Lance. Hunk, you’ll come with me for support.”

Hunk nodded. “Got it.”

Pidge turned her head towards Keith. “Keith, you’re going to go through the halls and follow our orders through this comm system,” Pidge went back towards her bag, and pulled out a few small earpieces. “They’re just like the helmet ones, except they’re smaller and can fit into your ear. I made them specifically for this trip. Once Hunk and I find out where Lance is, we’ll guide you down the halls. Got it?”

Keith nodded, fitting the earpiece into his ear. “Got it.”

“Then let’s head out.” 

* * *

 

Whatever had knocked him out, had worn off. Lance could feel that his limbs felt lighter, his mind less foggy. It didn’t do anything to take away the terror he felt, all the way to his bones.

“What do you w-want?” He choked, trying to back up as much as he could. “My-my feathers, they’re gone. They won’t be white again!”

The Prince kept an easy stance, calm, relaxed. There was still that piercing look in his eyes, but excitement shone beneath them.

“Human, there is no need to be scared,” the prince soothed, his voice oddly enough, sounding much different than it had when he had greeted everybody for the first time.

Lance drew in a breath, willing his voice not to shake. “What do you want with me?”

“Here,” the prince outstretched his wing, pointing to a chair, “sit down. I know this seems… alarming, but let me explain.”

Lance bit his lip, looking at the chair out of the corner of his eye. It was large, plump, and looked comforting. He didn’t know if it was a trap or not. Yet, he was here alone with the prince, virtually nothing to protect himself with, so it would probably be best if he just… listened. He took two steps and warily sat down.

“Thank you.”  

He nodded once.

“Now, I know you and your team knows about the white feathers and the significance they play in my father’s… culture.” _My father’s culture._ Was it not the prince’s culture too?

Lance nodded again.

“I wish to change it.”

“You’re lying.” Lance couldn’t help the outburst, couldn’t help but express his utter disbelief. This seedface was lying.

The prince sighed, leaning up against a wall. He seemed… casual, intense, fully aware of the situation, but he didn’t hold himself up in a way that screamed royalty.

“I know that this situation is difficult, and that it’s hard to trust my words.”

“....”

“But, _you_ are the key to ending everything.”

Lance sucked in a breath- what did that mean?

“Everything?”

They made eye contact, the prince’s stare sending shivers down Lance’s spine. “I believe that you could be the key to ending the blight- the whiteness and obsession that had spread across my father’s kingdom.”

Every part of Lance’s body stilled. This couldn’t be real- the prince was lying. He was the son of the king, he had drugged and kidnapped him to get him here! There was no way. Even so, a small part of Lance was telling him to get more information, to hear more of the story.

“What is this ‘blight,’ why is there an obsession with white feathers here- who caused it? Your father? You? Both? Why did you drug me to get me here, and what’s on my wings? Don’t you think that you can just trick me into going along with a little master plan to get more white feathers from me, or kill me or whatever. Keith’s probably already going ape-shit looking for me right now- he’ll know that I’m gone. So, answers. _Now.”_ The boy tried to put as much authority into his voice as he could, not only to make himself stronger, but to feel it too. He’d get out of this. He’d be okay- but it was his duty as a paladin to get as much information he could.

The prince clicked his beak, his feathers shifting.“Hmm, I wouldn’t expect any less from you, human. It is not like a paladin to just blindly follow one’s words. I’ll explain everything to you- from the start.”  

* * *

 

Keith watched from behind Pidge’s back as she worked with the computers and machines in front of her. He felt useless, unable to help, which in turned fueled his anxiety. _Fuck._ How could he let Lance disappear like that? Why didn’t he wake up? What if Lance was in some serious danger?

“Can you hurry up?” He snapped, eyes scanning across the screens Pidge was looking at, trying to figure out what was going on.

“Don’t rush me, _Keith.”_ Pidge replied hottily, her voice tensed. “I’m trying my best. This planet’s security system is different than I’m used to.”

Hunk looked between the two nervously, wings drawn up tight. “We’ll find Lance. Maybe… maybe he’s just wandering around- I know he likes to do that sometimes. He did it a lot when we were roommates and he missed his family.”

“If he’s just wandering, I’m going to kill him.” Keith replied, eyes still glued to the screen. Suddenly, it switched- camera tapes played in front of them.  

People approaching their door. Lance opening it, his hair messy and eyes squinted. A rag pressed up against Lance’s mouth-him passing out and dragged away.

“Fuck.” Keith whispered, watching intently. “Fuck, fuck, _fuck!”_

“Well, he definitely isn’t wandering’” Pidge muttered. “Keith, now’s your time to shine. From your room, it looks like they went left- go out there, and I’ll figure out where they went and direct you. Hunk, stay here with me, please.”

Keith’s wings itched. He wanted to rip the entire palace apart, piece by piece. It could burn for all he cared. He quietly made his way out of the control room, heading back to his and Lance’s door. Was he hurt? Was he scared?

Keith just wanted Lance to be okay. He felt an urge, deep inside him, to protect him- to shield him from harm. He didn’t want to see Lance hurt like he was, feathers torn out, sobbing on the floor, ever again. It haunted his dreams.

His jaw clenched. He struggled to swallow his spit. If something was happening to Lance- if he… if he was hurt again, Keith swore that he’d kill the prince and king himself. He wouldn’t mind getting blood on his hands for Lance’s sake.

“Alright Keith, take a left- go down the hall, and take another right. Be quiet, and watch out for guards.  I’ll get Hunk to watch the live cameras to warn you.” Pidge’s voice broke through Keith’s thoughts, focusing him on his mission.

“Got it, thanks Pidge. Hunk, watch out for me, yeah?”

“I got your back buddy!”

Huh. So both Lance and Hunk referred to him as ‘buddy.’ Well, they were best friends, after all.

Keith continued down his path, steps quiet, wings ruffled. He reached the right turn, hovering around the corner to make sure there weren’t any guards before proceeding.

“Pidge, where to next?”

A handful of more directions, cautions, and warnings. He followed them easily, dodging the guards that Hunk warned him about, making sure he followed Pidge’s directions.  

He was at a dead end.

“Keith, just give me some time to figure this out- I’m sure we've been following the tapes right, but they just… disappear! I just need a few minutes-”

“We don’t have a few minutes, Pidge! Lance could be hurt, he could be in pain! You have to try _harder_!” Irritation stemmed from a deep set worry gnawed at the pit of Keith's stomach.  

“I _know_ that Keith! I’m trying my hardest, I-I” Guilt flashed through him when he heard the panic in Pidge’s voice. He knew she was trying her hardest.

“I’m sorry Pidge- I… I know that, I’m just… worried.”

“...Me too Keith. Hang on, I’ll figure it out.”

He stared around the hallway in silence. It was quiet- located in a more dead part of the palace. What was so special here- where had they suddenly gone? Keith took a deep breath, closing his eyes. His wings ruffled. He would find Lance.

“There’s a hidden door!”

 

* * *

“My father started the culture many years ago- when he was still in his youth. Our kingdom… was falling apart. The current queen was on her deathbed, with no heir. She was young- around your age… she was among the first victims of the blight.”

Lance blinked, wheels turning in his head. “Explain this ‘ _blight._ ’”

The prince nodded, “the blight is what we call your sickness. The whitening of the feathers. Except, when one of our species catches the blight, they die. It happens quickly- as soon as their last feather turns.”

So it was a sickness? If people were dying from this, then… why were white feathers valued so heavily? Lance voiced his concerns.

“Quick, aren’t you?” The prince chuckled. “That is part of the story- do not worry, I will explain everything. As I was saying, the queen was sick. My father, who was a part of the royal court, was eager to take her position. He was ambitious, and rash…all he could see was power. But, he was smart. He claimed to be looking for a cure for the queen- working tirelessly at it, constantly updating the public-”

“Wait, how do you know all of this?” Lance interjected, eyeing him carefully. “You’re his son- you couldn’t have been born yet. Either that, or too young to understand what was going on.”

The prince nodded again, seemingly pleased with Lance’s questioning. “Right again, Paladin. While might not have been born yet, others within this castle have served for many, many years. They have not forgotten the old kingdom.”  

Lance considered his words carefully. After a moment, he nodded again. “Keep going.”

“As I said, my father was gaining popularity with the public. People were dying at a considerable pace- the elderly, and children at first, but afterwards, it mostly took place in young adults, like you. A whole generation was beginning to disappear. My father promised to save them, including the queen. What they didn’t know, however, was he was the one who started the virus.”

The prince’s eyes darkened.

“He was the one who gave it to the queen, who made it spread to everyone else. It was fabricated, all by him.”

Lance was quiet. He knew people could be deceitful, could be vile, but this… this was bad. Pretty fucking bad. Yet, another question popped into his head. “So your father created this blight. Did he create the religion that goes around it too?”

A flash of surprise went across the prince’s face. “I did not realize you knew about the religion. But to answer your question, yes, he did. When the queen was on the verge of death, nearly all of her feathers turned, my father had the antidote. He knew he was going to use it on her, but he also wanted to create a being for the people to blindly worship- to have total control over them, like he had seen with so many other planets. He was going to use religion to manipulate them.”

Lance knew people back on earth who used religion to manipulate, too.

“Before he gave the antidote to the queen, he gave a speech to the citizens, and used an array of special effects to make it look as though he was ‘blessed’ magically by a god to create this antidote. This god is symbolized by the white feathers. When the queen was healed, my father claimed that the god wanted them to marry, so they did. And they had me.”

“Okay,” Lance acknowledged, nodding his head. He didn’t know how to take all of this information- was the prince lying, or was he telling the truth. He didn’t know. “So how does all of this lead up to now, if your father’s antidote worked, why are there still sick people?”

“You see, it didn’t work. It only delayed the process long enough for the queen to get better for a while, marry, and produce a heir. His plan was perfect; he create gained the trust of a whole kingdom, created a way to manipulate them, and then secured his position and power. When the queen died, he created the gist of the religion- that these deaths were the ‘purification of the soul,’ and that the white feathers that remained were extremely valuable, and to be cherished. The kingdom took it the rest of the way- all the trafficking. My father fueled, this, sending out vials of the virus to different groups, so that they could round up citizens and contaminate them for money.And thus, the disease never died out.”

Lance felt a little sick- this king... he was a monster. On par with the Galra.

“And now it’s contaminated humans, on your planet.” The prince’s voice was grave.

“I don’t think it’s the same thing.” Lance blurted, “Nobody dies from getting white feathers. It’s just… looked down upon. Also, it’s a form of albinism that only manifests in certain individuals.” Lance felt his wing bones clenching together, protectively. “Like me.”

“No, I know for a fact he sent out the virus to the only other winged planet he knows of- I watched him do it, when I was 8 years old. He wants to create another factory, to harvest more; to enslave your planet, I suppose. However, your species not dyinging off is precisely the reason why I need you. You’re the cure. _Help me Lance,_ help me to get rid of this blight, and take down my father. Help me rebuild my planet, and ensure the safety of your own.”

“That’s… that’s ridiculous!” Lance’s mind whirred- when had the white feathers emerged on earth? Actually… quite recently, within the last 15 years or so- he remembered the doctors saying that when he got diagnosed. They had said it was a form of albinism, but since it was so new…. they didn’t know for sure. Bile rose up in Lance’s throat. It could all be true- his planet, his home… it could be a part of a huge plan. It could be taken, if he didn’t step in to protect it.

“You’re thinking i’m right, aren’t you?”

He let out a breath through his nose.

“Yes.”

The prince opened his mouth to speak, but there was a sudden _boom,_ and the door to the room slammed open, pieces of it going flying.

“Don’t move! Give me Lance, or I swear to god I’ll cut your fucking head off.”

“Keith!”

Oh fuck, what a shit storm.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, I'm back! I'm lowkey dying because ITS HOT but also NEW SEASON TOMORROW OMG I'M GOING TO CRY... I'll have to wait a week to watch it. Crap. No spoilers! 
> 
> Anyways, I hope you guys liked this chapter!!! What do you think of the prince? ? Do you think Lance should trust him? What do you think of his explanations of everything??? How did you find this chapter, was it okay? Let me know! 
> 
> Keith is a little distraught lol- his just wants to get Lance back.. (cough... he has a crush... cough cough) I tried to include Pidge and Hunk a little more in this chapter, to try and get them to bond over finding Lance lol. 
> 
> Lance is fucked up now. If all this is real... oh boy. I wonder what's going to happen to his wings? 
> 
> Well, let me know what you think about this chapter! As always I love you guys!


	13. Answers

Keith breathed hard through his nose, wings raised, puffed as a sign of aggression. He meant business. Whatever the fuck was going on here was going to end, now. He was going to get Lance and leave this fucking planet, regardless of what Shiro or Allura said. Enough was enough.  

His Marmora knife was raised, the edge of it glinting, pointed at the prince.

“Lance, get behind me,” Keith breathed, keeping his eyes trained. “We’re leaving.” 

The prince’s eyes bore into Keith’s own, sharp grey piercing a furious black. The prince clicked his beak, shoulders shifting before he turned his head to look at Lance. “I think… some explanations are in order. Please, calm down red paladin. While you were not meant to find us tonight, I can assure you that your partner isn’t in any danger. We were discussing… important matters.”

Pidge’s and Hunk’s voices buzzed in Keith’s ear, but he ignored them. “Why should I believe you?” Keith growled, unyielding to the prince’s words. “You fucking drugged him to get him here!”

“For which I can explain.”

“Bullshit! Lance! Come on!”

“Keith, put down the knife.”

Lance’s words came as a surprise to him. Keith shifted his eyes to Lance, catching a look at his face. It was serious, creases formed between the boy’s brows. Yet, he didn’t look scared, or frightened.

“Lance, he kidnapped you! He’s obviously not safe, we have to go!” Keith almost pleaded, wings sinking a bit. 

“Put down the knife.” There was an intensity in Lance’s voice that made Keith falter, knife lowering a centimeter or two. “Let me explain.”

Eyes shifting between his ally and the prince, Keith sighed, his hand falling slack to his side. Even though his knife was lowered, Keith’s wings were still puffed out, feathers looking sharp and jutted out. He looked towards the prince, furious gray meeting a beady black. “Explain.”

And so the prince did- with the help of Lance. Keith had discreetly turned up the reception on his device so that Pidge and Hunk could hear too; they deserved to know what was happening, obviously.  

He didn’t know what to think.

All this deceit- Lance seemed to believe it, but Keith wasn’t so sure. He wouldn’t put it past the king to do something so awful, but how did they know that the prince wasn’t just tricking them? He seemed to claim that he wanted to find a cure to the disease, and that Lance was the key, but what if he was just trying to take advantage of him? He knew Lance had the white feathers, so what if he just wanted to farm him like the others?

Keith swallowed a lump in his throat. Lance looked at him intensely, eyes sparked with determination. He reached out, touching Keith’s arm. His wings were still bare, but now that the bandages had been taken off, he could see the little nubs of new feathers growing back in. He noticed that they were shiny- something had been smoothed across them.

“The salve that we have will make his feathers grow back much more quickly than the natural process. We can heal your teammate, make his feathers stronger than before, and also find a cure to save my kingdom.” The prince spoke, his voice clear and steady. “Together, we can make Uilf prosperous again- and I can assure you, that when I ascend to the throne, you will have an ally.”   

Keith shot Lance a sideways glance, a mix of emotions tumbling throughout his stomach. He could already see that the salve was working- Lance’s wings beginning to bud. Lance could have his wings back faster than before, and his feathers would be stronger. They could save the planet. Yet he still felt unsure. Shiro and Allura and Coran didn’t know about this yet, and Hunk and Pidge hadn’t been given the chance to give their input. Keith and Lance needed to consult their team. Their family.

“Give us one day to consider.” He finally spoke.

The prince’s gaze did not leave Keith’s as he nodded. “One day.”

 

* * *

The first thing Keith did when they left the hidden room was grab Lance by the shoulders and look him over once, twice to make sure he was okay. He could feel his own heart beating fast, relief washing over him when it finally hit him that Lance was  _ okay. _ They found him. He wasn’t bleeding, or dying, or hidden away somewhere. The next thing he did was glare at him.

“Hey! What’s that look for?!” Lance exclaimed, eyebrows shooting up to his hairline, hands raised.

“You scared the shit out of me, Lance!” Keith replied furiously, huffing as he folded his wings against his back. “I didn’t know where you went, or what happened… When Pidge hacked into the surveillance system, I thought you were a goner. I was about to tear this whole damn castle apart looking for you!”

Speaking of Pidge, both her and Hunk were still chattering in his ear, bombarding him with questions on what was going on, and if Lance really was okay, and  _ awwww keith that’s so cute, you care about him!  _ Keith tried to ignore the blush that was creeping across his cheeks.

“I… I’m sorry, Keith.” Lance whispered, eyes turned towards the ground. “It’s not like I willingly left! You saw, they drugged me to get me there. And I know that sounds bad- it does, but like… I believe the Prince. I don’t know why, but something about what he said made me believe him. And if everything’s true, If I’m the key to the cure,” he suddenly looked Keith in the eye, expression more serious than Keith had ever seen, “then I have to do it. I have to work with him- I just can’t let a whole generation of people die. I… I can’t.”

A rush of emotion swept past Keith, making his wings droop as he looked at him. “Lance… I…”

“I have to do it.” 

“I know.” Keith replied. “I understand.” All Lance had gone through, his condition- it linked to this. Keith just wished none of it had to do with the Prince. “Let’s go back and see Pidge and Hunk; they’re buzzing my ear off right now.”

“Wait, Pidge and Hunk have been talking to you?!” Lance exclaimed.

“Uh, yeah. Pidge has a device- she can hear us right now. She’s trying to give me a scientific explanation as to what it is, but I can’t repeat it.” Keith smirked as Pidge started to yell in his ear, spewing insults.

Lance smiled. There were bags underneath his eyes, and he looked tired, but Keith was glad to see him smile despite what was going on.  “Let’s go.” 

 

* * *

“Lance! My man, you’re okay!” Hunk exclaimed, smiling ear to ear, arms and wings wide.

They were back in Lance and Keith’s room- waiting for both of them.  Lance game him a smile back, pushing down his exhaustion to embrace his best friend. Pidge stood next to him, pushing up her glasses.

“It’s  good to see that you’re okay, Lance. We were all pretty worried.” She murmured, a small frown on her face. “I don’t know what we would do if something happened to you.” 

Hunk gave her a side eye, before opening one of the wings wrapped around Lance, and pulling her into the hug.

“Aww, you guys! You do care!” Lance laughed, snuggling deeper into Hunk’s warm feathers. He felt safe, but he also felt like something was missing- Keith. “Keith, get in here! This is a flock bonding moment!”

“I-but, Shiro and Coran and Allura aren’t here! How can it be a flock bonding moment?” Keith started to argue, but then was yanked it by an unforgiving Pidge.

“Don’t care, get in here you little shit!”

“Pidge, language!”

“Fuck off, Keith, Shiro isn’t here! Now Shhhhhhh, let me enjoy this moment.”

Lance could feel the vibrations off of Hunk’s chest as he chuckled, pulling his wings in tight to embrace everybody. He felt a deep sense of belonging, of contentment. Despite everything that had happened, despite the worry that gnawed at his stomach, he felt happy. He turned his head to the side, facing Keith. The boy was looking at him with round eyes, a faint pink swept across his cheeks. They made eye contact for a second, before Keith turned away, pressing his cheek against Hunk’s soft shirt. Lance felt his own cheeks heat, before he did just the same, seeking out more heat.

They broke away after a couple minutes, launching themselves into conversation, discussing what had just happened, and what they needed to do.

“Wait,” Pidge said just before they started to get into it, “everybody else needs to be here. Shiro and Allura don’t even know what happened!”

Well, they couldn’t start without Shiro and Allura being in the know-how. Hunk had left quickly, bringing back a bleary eyed Shiro and Allura, both looking drowsy but concerned.

Lance explained everything again- how he was kidnapped, how the prince had given him a special cream on his wings that would make the feathers grow back at a much more rapid speed. About the King. About the disease. About him being the cure. Allura and Shiro were horrified-

“Oh my! This is unacceptable! Kidnapping- a Paladin!” Allura sounded like she was going to com bust, her voice wavering until Lance interrupted and reminded her about the disease and the cure. “Well still… Kidnapping…” Keith looked like he agreed with her. Shiro was quiet the whole time, listening intently, though his wings were a little more tense than usual. 

“So what do we want to do about this?” Pidge asked, as she scooted a little closer to Lance. The flock instincts had set into everybody- protect the one most in danger.

“.....”

Lance felt unease bubble up inside of him, a mixture of feelings that he couldn't sort out- was he scared, was he nervous? Lance knew he wanted to help. He knew that from the very start- but was everything true? Was he the cure? If he was, he wouldn’t hesitate. But what if… it was a trap, and something went wrong and he ended up jeopardizing the team? He couldn’t stand to see any one of them hurt because of him.

Shiro broke the silence,“if the Prince isn’t lying, then Lance could be the sole cure to hundreds and thousands of people.”

Allura nodded, “that is true… And it is a Paladin’s duty to serve the universe. To  look over something as detrimental as this…”

“But it could be a trap!” Keith argued, nostrils flaring. “The Prince hasn’t exactly given us reason to trust him.”

“I agree with Keith!” Pidge piped up, wings flaring out a little. “He seems sketch. Extra sketch.”

Lance bit his lip. What Allura and Shiro were saying was right, but he also had reservations. Flashes of his time in that dungeon still saturated his mind, seeping through it like oil. Him begging Hunk and Pidge to look away-pulling out all of his feathers afterwards. He felt a cold shiver run down his spine.

Keith flashed him a look, hand reaching out, stopping, then going back down.  

“I think Lance should decide.” Hunk spoke out suddenly, his warm, yet worried glance going over Lance. “He’s the one who’s going to be doing this after all- he needs to decide.”

Everyone’s gaze turned to him, and Lance took in a deep breath. “I… I said this to Keith already, but… I think I have to. I don’t want to be stupid and say that it’s not going to be a trap but if what the prince is saying is true, then I can’t just sit back. If i’m the cure, then I’m going to help. I’m just one person- just one life. What is mine worth compared to hundreds of thousands of others? The prince just wants some of my feathers. And you know, if we wants all of them after they grow back, then so be it. It’s not like they haven’t been plucked out before.”

Hunk suddenly got up, and wrapped his arms and wings around Lance, tears sprouting up in his eyes. “Lance!”

Shiro looked at him seriously, his voice steady. “Are you sure you want to do this? You don’t have to, if you don’t want to. Nobody is forcing you to.” Despite the tension that had been between them, Lance could tell that Shiro genuinely cared- he didn’t just think of him as a nuisance.

“I have to, Shiro.  _ I  _ want to do this. Something inside of me is telling me to.” Lance could feel it inside him, a gut feeling.

“Then we’ll help you as much as we can. We’re a team. We’re a flock.”  

Lance nodded. Hunk broke down into tears. Pidge started furiously typing into her laptop, muttering something about create new technology to help him. Allura started discussing strategies to help prevent them from falling prey into a trap, just in case.

Keith wouldn’t stop staring at him.

 

* * *

It had been a couple hours of talking and discussing strategics with the team, but eventually everybody had ended up just lying on top of each other, planning slipping into conversation. They really had become a flock, Lance thought to himself. When had it happened- when had it all slipped into place? He took a moment to think about it.

After the  _ event _ . That’s where he could pinpoint it- after they had escaped from the dungeons, all bloody and frightened and scared. After he had plucked. It had brought everybody together, in a weird way. Lance felt guilty. He tried to shake those thoughts away, instead focusing on Keith who was shooing everybody out of the door, claiming Lance needed to get some sleep.  They all did. He could see it in everybody’s eyes, the heavyweight of exhaustion. He felt it himself. But, Lance supposed that the flock mentality had been kicking in, making everybody reluctant to leave.

Keith was the only one who was in the outskirts of the flock. He was a part of it- Lance could feel it, but he was distant. Not as close as everyone else. Yet, he was still furiously protective of Lance. Shiro’s words to him back on the ship rang through Lance’s head as he thought about it,  _ “now that you two have formed a bond, he’s scared of losing it, just like he had lost ours at one point in time.” . _ He was scared.

Lance didn’t blame him.

“Lance?” Keith’s voice brought him out of his thoughts.

“Yeah?”

“Are you still cool if we… you know, sleep in the same bed?” There was insecurity in Keith’s voice, quiet, but still present.

“Yeah, of course. It’s all goooood, nothing like a little brotherly-bro-bed-sharing.” Lance tried to sound casual, light-hearted. He was a little sick of all the dramatics, and all the worrying thoughts go through his head.

“Brotherly?” Keith blurted, wings sinking. 

“Uh, yeah? We’re friends aren’t we? I know I was a dick about sharing the bed before, but…” Lance shrugged his shoulders. “It’s cool now.” 

“Ah, right. Yeah. Well that’s good- I don’t- the bed is more comfy.” The raven-haired boy sounded flustered, and he turned around, his back facing Lance. “Well, I’m just gonna- yep. Get into bed.” He quickly climbed in, tucking his wings tight against his back.

Lance watched, a little confused, but humored, before he followed, lifting the blanket. They didn’t bother with making a pillow shield.

The silence that followed ate at Lance. He wasn’t used to silence- not when he came from a house that always had noise, or from a castle that always had a hum. No, this silence was absolute. He could hear Keith’s breaths, but that didn’t seem to help, something felt off, something felt wrong-

“Keith?” 

“Yeah?”

“I- It’s actually hard for me to fall asleep alone. Did you know that? I don’t mean to keep you awake, but it’s like, too quiet and my brain won’t stop turning.” The words tumbled out of Lance’s mouth, filling the air. 

He felt Keith shift. “It’s okay… talk as much as you want. I’ll listen.” His voice was soft- softer than it normally was.

Lance nodded, taking a breath. “It’s just that… back on earth, there wasn’t any quiet in my house. There was always something happening, even if it was at night. I never really… slept alone. There was always a sibling in my bed- nightmares, or sleepovers, or cuddles, and I was used to it.  Sometimes I had a hard time sleeping at the garrison, because of it- the castle too. I just.. This is nice. Sleeping here with you- not in a weird way or anything!” Lance could hear himself rambling. “I like it. I’ve been so on edge, since… and I just, I miss my family. A lot. But I love all of you guys- you’re my space family, so it’s just… nice. I didn’t know how to admit it before, that’s why I was being a butt about sharing beds.”

Keith was quiet for a moment, before speaking. “It’s okay. I… get it. Kind of- I’m the opposite, I’ve only ever been in silence, but I understand. I…” He shifted. “I like being here too, so, uh. I guess, if you ever want to do it again, you can, uh, ask. And I’ll say yes.”

Lance felt a rush of emotion go through him, before he flipped around, to face Keith. “Thank you.” He looked at Keith’s face dark outline, nodding slightly, before leaning forward, pressing his face against his chest, savoring the heat and touch. “Is this okay?”

Keith hesitated before answering, voice a little tense. “Yes.”

A sigh escaped him, as he finally relaxed, feeling the soft texture of fabric against his cheek. Lance vaguely remembered feeling an arm draping over his torso before slipping away into darkness.

* * *

 

There was a single white piece of paper resting on their windowsill that morning, containing eight words:

_ What is your answer? You have until sundown. _

Lance had answered it, and left it on that windowsill, figuring it would find its way back to its owner. He had looked the prince in the eye when both he and Keith walked into the dining room that morning.

There was still that piercing glint, and a hint of a smile.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A new chapter!!!!! Yay!!!!! It took me a bit to write this one- so much stuff happened in my life that I totally got distracted! But on the plus side I dropped chemistry so I could take an easier science course and I have a lot more free time! (I hate chemistry but bio is my jam! I can rock that shit, I have quizlets GALORE) Hopefully now that school is started I can get a regular posting schedual up for this too- that tends to happen with me, because I'm on a school schedule. 
> 
> Also, I loved the new season of Voltron. Loved it. I was kinda bummed to hear that a lot of people hated it, but I guess there's just a lot of different opinions ! Contrary to my fics, I mostly just watch voltron for the story, not the ships. 
> 
> How did you guys like this chapter? I tried to include everybody (except coran sorry bud) in it this time! 
> 
> Keith does NOT like being called a brother, (cough cough) could you tell? 
> 
> What do you think of the prince so far? Am I doing his character justice? 
> 
> Thanks for all of your love and support and input! I love all of you guys!


	14. 14. Realization

Lance’s fingertips brushed the edge of his wings, lingering there as they ran over the little nubs of feathers poking through the skin. His eyes were fixated on them as he stood in the large bathroom, facing the mirror. Two days, and already this- already starting out. He’d have down by the end of the week, and flights soon after. He bit his lip- despite his team’s sole-hearted acceptance of him with white wings, Lance still wasn’t sure what he’d feel if they came back white. He knew that they probably would- this time wasn’t like last time, but still… 

“Lance?” A knock on the door and Keith’s voice had Lance drawing his fingers away, turning to face it. “You almost done? The guards are here to take you to the prince.”

Right, the experiments- they’d be starting. A flood of pride went through Lance, as he ducked down to grab his shirt. His wings were useful- the whiteness of his feathers weren’t terrible, they were possibly the key to save thousands of people. They helped him fulfill his job as a Paladin of Voltron.

“Yeah Keith, I’ll be right out!” Lance called back. He turned to face the mirror, looking into it. His skin wasn’t too bad- he had been sleeping. Pretty well, actually. Having Keith next to him helped Lance to get just that little bit of comfort to home- the warmth of another body, whom he could pretend were his brothers or sisters when he was drifting off. Keith didn’t seem to mind, either.

Smoothing out his hair,  he took a moment to admire the clothes the Prince had sent to him;  traditional Ulif attire, ocean blue, light, airy. The pants came up to his belly button, with the shirt long-sleeved and cut right above the pantline, so that there was just that little bit of skin peaking out. The blue looked nice against his tanned complexion, and the holes in the shirt for his wings to come through were comfortable.

Opening the door, he walked out, putting on his usual sneakers that he wore around the ship, because the shoes the prince sent him didn’t fit his feet. Keith was standing at the door, his arms crossed, eyebrows slightly furrowed. His eyes quickly went up and down, taking in Lance’s attire. Lance smirked.

“You like the clothes, Keith? I wanna bring this set with me once we leave. You should grab a pair too! You can get red ones.”

Keith smiled, nodding his head.

“Sureee thing. Pidge should get green ones, Hunk yellow, Allura pink and Shiro black so that we can all be a set.”  There was a bit of jest in his voice.

“Don’t forget Coran! Orange!!” Lance corrected, laughter bubbling up inside of him.

“Yes, Coran too. Okay, seriously though, the guards are waiting. You’d better get going.” Keith reached out, to tap Lance on the shoulder. “Remember- tell us everything that happened after you finished. You have the call device with you, right? If anything happens, if the prince does anything, just tap it and we’ll come kick his ass.”

Lance flicked his hand away, forcing a smile.“I know, I know. I got it. I have the device- everything will be fine. I’m going.”

Keith nodded, satisfied enough with Lance’s answer.

A twinge of nervousness went through Lance- it was the first session. The first step towards creating a cure. He felt as though there would be some way he’d mess it up- some way he’d let everybody down, despite the determination that flowed through him.

Still, he had to try. He had to work his hardest- there wasn’t any excuse not to, especially with so many lives at stake.

He opened the door, giving a curt nod to the guards standing outside of it. “I’m ready, take me to the Prince now.”

The guards nodded, before one with bright, multi-colored feathers started to lead the way, the other coming up in behind Lance. He couldn’t help but think he was some sort of prisoner, being whisked away to Jail, but knew well enough that it wasn’t true.

It was a silent walk towards the Prince’s quarters- despite Lance’s best efforts to get the guards to talk, they seemed uninterested in doing so.

When they reached the Prince’s quarters, the guards knocked once, before waiting. After a couple of seconds, the door opened, and the Prince welcomed Lance in, wing draping over Lance’s shoulder as he guided him.

“Come, come! Welcome- here take a seat,” his voice clicked. The door closed shut, latching, and the Prince seemed to relax. Lance looked around- there were flowers, bushels of them, everywhere. Along with food, and various shiny-looking objects.

“My father believes that I’m trying to court you.”, The Prince explained, wing expanding to reference around the room. |That’s why there’s so much stuff in here- and hence, the clothing I sent. It was the only way I could have you come here so often for your tests, without being suspicious and getting interrupted. In our culture, courting couples… they’re not to be disturbed behind closed doors.”  

Lance nodded, swallowing his spit. So that explained the clothes- he had though the Prince had just been being nice.

“Not that I don’t enjoy sending you presents, however. I must say… you look extravagant in those clothes.” The Prince’s beady eyes sparkled.

“So the experiments? The research?” Lance questioned, changing the subject.

“Follow me- I have a hidden compartment behind this wall. I have my lab supplies in there.”

Lance turned, following the Prince as he approached the adjacent wall, watching as the Prince pressed certain stones of it, in a particular order- he felt as though he was watching a cartoon or something, stifling laughter as the wall opened in a disney-like fashion. It created a breeze that was cool against his wings. He stepped inside, tensing as the wall closed behind him, silently thanking Keith for the communication device he had been given.

“Sit. I will explain the procedure.”  The Prince’s voice clacked, as he turned his beak to point to the chair behind him. It was simple. The whole lab was simple- a little dark, but lit up with glowing blue lights. There were screens and machines, general techy-looking instruments. They seemed to stand out against the almost medieval-like stone that made up the walls around them. Lance sat in the chair.

“So, I will be drawing out some of your essence-”

“You mean, my blood?” Lance cut off, questioning. He didn’t like having his blood drawn, but if it was needed, he wouldn’t complain. 

“No, your ‘essence,’ something close to that. It resides in all of us- just ask your Altean friend. It contains important genetic material- material I suppose your species hasn’t discovered quite yet.  For us, winged-folk, a lot of it resides in our wings and feathers. Since yours are gone, you’ll have to be put in a machine where it’s extracted from all over. The essence will regenerate, slowly, but you won’t be missing it forever. I’ll go over your DNA with my machines after,” The Prince explained slowly, concisely.  He pointed towards the machine- something that resembled and MRI, which Lance wasn’t too fond of, but wasn’t going to flat out reject. 

“Alright. Should I get in?”

“Yes, just lay down flat and I’ll fix everything up for you.”

Lance followed the directions, laying down on the table, wings folded neatly underneath him. After a while, the pressure on his wings would hurt, but he didn’t think he’d be there for so long.  

The Prince went through a series of typing, flipping switches, adjusting things, before pressing one final button, a gentle hum and dim blue lights indicating that the machine had turned on. Lance swallowed his spit, that nervousness he had been feeling earlier sticking to him like the sweat on his palms.

“Alright, so now, I will begin the extraction- it shouldn’t take more than a few dobashes. You will feel quite drained afterwards, however. It’s to be expected.” 

Lance nodded, curling his fists and squeezing his eyes shut. The surface beneath him began to move, bringing him towards something that he wasn’t particularly keen on knowing- the less he knew about the procedure, the better right? It wouldn’t make him as nervous. The humm continued, but the moving stopped for a moment, leaving Lance questioning, before it hit him. The draining- the sucking of, well, everything. It felt as though particles of himself were being extracted through his skin, like water being drawn up through it. It didn’t hurt, but… he could feel the strain. It felt weird. 

It was a few minutes, and then… it was over. Done. He was instructed to sit up, and let the Prince give him a general look over, before being allowed to leave. The Uillfling was holding a vial of glowing, yellow-ish liquid- what Lance presumed to be his essence. The immature part of him frowned at it not being blue. If anything, it should have been blue!

As he was being escorted away, Lance could definitely feel the strain- the tiredness that came from it. It wasn’t too bad, but he just felt like he should go take a nap, or rest or something. The rest of the team wouldn’t mind, especially when he would be doing this practically every day, and the Prince had told him, to extract “the different kinds” of essence, or whatever because there were apparently hundreds of them. Maybe there’d be a blue one.

Keith was waiting for him, in their room, ready to call in the rest of the team for debriefing before Lance waved him off.

“ I know you guys need to know what’s happening, but I’m drained… I seriously need  a nap right now. Can I let you guys know afterwards?” Lance put a little extra sweetness in his voice, in hopes that it, along with his tired face, would win Keith over. Apparently, it did.

Keith’s dark eyebrows furrowed, as his eyes swept across Lance’s face, a small frown forming.

“Yeah, you look beat. I’ll tell Shiro that we’ll debrief after supper. Want me to wake you when it’s ready?”  

“Yes please.”

* * *

 

And so on the research went.

Day, after day, as Lance’s feathers grew in at a rapid pace due to the medication. His down was fully in now, flight feathers starting to bud.

Each time, the strain got harder, the draining of his energy more pronounced- after two weeks, Lance could hardly keep his eyes open some days.  

Keith was worried- he fretted over his friend, making him eat, bringing him to his bed.

As Lance’s feathers grew in, white, like expected, and as the research went on, more presents were sent to their room- flowers, food, clothes, jewelry, handwritten letters. The Prince claimed it was to continue to fool his father into thinking they were a courting couple, but Keith couldn’t help but think otherwise.

The Prince was more tactile with Lance- lingering touches at dinner, offers to help Lance put on the salve, brushing of shoulders, Keith noticed it all. Lance didn’t seem that into the Prince- moreso, just doing his job and being sociable, but still…

Keith swallowed hard,as he turned a corner in one of the hallways, walking to go grab Lance from one of his sessions.This was his go-to thinking time. The Prince was hard-core flirting with Lance- act or not, Keith had a hard time stomaching it.

It was jealousy. He got the same feeling when looking at the two of them together as when he saw a loving parent and child as a youngster- there wasn’t mistaking it. It panged in him, and he didn’t quite know why; Lance was already his friend. Even though their relationship had turned out rocky, with the fake rivalry and everything, it was something now. They shared a bed right now for god’s sake! They hadn’t had a major fight for the majority of their time on the planet!  They were doing pretty good, but Keith had a feeling about the Prince. It resided in his gut- whenever he saw Lance and the Prince talking, a pang went through him. It was unfamiliar, painful- yet the same sort of pang went through him when Lance looked at him, talked to him. A sort of jolt, a hyper-awareness. He often found himself focusing on Lance’s eyebrows, and the way that they moved, the way they moved, formed expression, before having to tear his gaze away.

Having Lance rest a hand near his side while sleeping set his heart drumming, beating thickly  against his sternum. It was a new, foreign feeling, one that seemed to exemplify whatever jealousy he felt towards Lance and the Prince together.

Wait. His footsteps stopped in front of the door, listening in on the sounds coming from behind it.

The Prince’s compliments, flirtatious and smooth, Lance’s stuttering reply.

Keith’s whole body froze.

Holy shit.

He  _ liked _ Lance.  He had a crush  _ on Lance.  _ That was the feeling.

His hand fell from it’s knocking position.

Fuck.

  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm baccckkkkkkkk! I fully intend to finish this Fic, even if there's big gaps in between writing- life is hard man. I'm dead lol christmas break is the only reason why I'm still alive and yet I still gotta write two papers and annotate 50 poems but that's life I guess. 
> 
> Hi guys!!!! Sorry for the long break, but here's another chapter!!!! I have the rest of the chapters planned out now too, and it should be ending in about 5. That might sound a bit abrupt, but trust me, we're coming to some juicy stuff soon (: I might do some epilogue type stuff after too, like I did with my other fic. 
> 
> So happy to be back again, and hopefully I can punch out a few more chapters during my break! 
> 
> Also, I haven't seen the last season of Voltron yet. I know what happens, and regardless of the relationships I know that I will love it and cry but I'm also weak and a part of me doesn't want to watch it b/c then it will actually be over and I'll be sad so that's why. 
> 
> Love you guys so much!!!!


	15. Coolness Against Burning Skin

Lance felt as though his very bones were aching- his back, his legs, his… everything. The warmth that currently surrounded him was comforting, soothing, the fabric brushing against his arms smooth as satin. As the sleep dimmed around him, Lance felt as though he wanted to lay there forever. He couldn’t find it in himself to get up, to fight the ache, even though he knew that it was time. 

The experiments. 

They drained on him, each time the prince took away some of his “essence,” or whatever the hell he called it. It felt as though another little piece of him was missing, his energy was drained, his muscles were left sore as if he had ran for 50 miles, and his wings….

Well, his feathers were back.After those weeks, he had his flights- he could fly if he wanted, but… Lance couldn’t. He didn’t have enough energy. Or will.  

He still had a hard time looking at them in the mirror.

An alarm went off, next to the bed, further dragging Lance away from that blissful sleep- it made him aware of the heavy arm draped across his torso. Keith’s arm; they’d gotten used to sleeping in the same bed. After three weeks, they’d be bound to. The arm shifted, Keith groaning. Lance opened his eyes, squinting over at him.

Keith was on his side, facing Lance. His eyes were screwed shut, little creases forming around his eyebrows- even in his sleep, he scowled. Lance chuckled, quietly. It must be the alarm pulling Keith out of whatever dreams he was having. His wings were spread out- gleaming and healthy thanks to Lance’s work. If his own wings were ugly, might as well put all of his efforts into someone else’s. Plus, at night, after the experiments, despite the aching pull to just drop down and pass out, it calmed him, grounded him.

There was a sort of tentative bond between them- they didn’t bicker as much, rarely fought. When Lance thought about how they treated each other before they left on that very first mission, he felt a little ashamed. It had been ugly-  _ he  _ had been ugly. And Shiro had been right- the mission  _ did _ bond them. And then everything went to the shits, and Keith stuck to him like wet glue.

_ “He doesn’t want to lose you like he lost me, at one point.”  _  That’s what Shiro had said, and was also right about. Keith had a hard time bonding with people, but once he did, he was ferociously protective of them.

Keith didn’t like the experiments. Lance could see it in the way he looked at him every night, exhausted and worn out. Wings ugly, and drooping. Lance saw that look in his eyes- the look of pity and concern, frown settling deep in his mouth and eyebrows. He was worried…. But he let Lance continue. Well, it wasn’t as though Keith had any say over what Lance did, anyways, but. He didn’t protest.

Lance was grateful… something inside of him relied on him doing this. Following this mission through. The image of the pile of white feathers in that dungeon, the look of horror on Keith’s and Shiro’s faces when they recounted seeing all those dead Uilflings… all because of a disease that a King used to gain power- the same very king that was residing in this castle. The same king they were secretly working against, under the impression that the Prince and him were “courting.” He needed to cure this- no matter what it took out of him, those hundreds of lives would be more worth than his own.

The alarm went off again, and this time Keith actually opened his eyes, hissing under his breath to turn it off. He sat up, wings shifting, folding in on themselves so that they wouldn’t hit Lance in the face (he had done that a few times, before figuring it out).  One tap, and the Alarm shut off.

“Lance.” His voice was groggy.

Fuck. It was really time to get up.

“Lannceee.”

“I’m up.” It came out as a croak.

Every muscle was screaming at him as he forced himself up, wincing, hissing through the burn. Keith stared at him for a moment, a quick flash of concern crossing his face, before looking away. Not commenting on how Lance looked (he knew he looked bad)

“Do you want to use the bathroom first?” Keith asked, stretching out his arms and wings, a large yawn escaping from his mouth.

Lance shrugged. He probably should, or else he’d just fall back asleep in the bed. “Yeah.”

Squaring his jaw, Lance prepared himself for the pain as he pushed himself up, and off of the bed, wings tightly folded in on themselves, as they had been when he was sleeping. His joints barked in pain, hot flashes of it going up his body that made him hiss a little under his breath, but Lance continued on, despite Keith’s worried gaze burning holes into his back.This was his life now- at least, until the cure was made. 

They were getting close, the Prince had told him. Just a little more, hopefully by the end of the week.

And then he’d be done. All this taking from him would finally stop, and he’d finally have a chance to rebuild. 

No. Lance shook his head, as he headed towards the bathroom. He couldn’t keep thinking so selfishly about himself- it wasn’t about it, it was about the lives of the thousands in this kingdom.  _ They _ were important not him. 

He reached the bathroom, closing the door behind him.

Damn, did he look awful.

A pale face, dark bags under his eyes. Skin no longer gleaming, but dry and flaky, lips chapped and cracked. No matter how much moisturizer he put on, or how strictly he followed his skin care routine, his face just looked like this. Tired. Worn out. 

Lance extended each of his wings, looking at them in the large mirror. Stark white, but dull. A little brittle. Keith untangled his wings and applied the salve and oils to them almost every night for Lance,  (a thank you for Lance doing it for him, but probably just an excuse because he knew that Lance wasn’t going to do it for himself) but they never seemed to improve.

Lance still had a hard time looking at their color. The blankness of them. A part of him had been hoping that they would come back that beautiful cherry brown that his heart ached for, but his wished had not come true.

Pidge, Hunk and Shiro looked at them sometimes. He could see their stare linger just a little too long, a look of guilt flashing across their face any time they realized what they were doing. Judging him.

He knew his team cared for him- he knew that their words of affirmation regarding his wings had come from a place of truth within them, but he also knew that stigma was hard to get rid of, with it’s nasty claws dug in deep. Lance knew they didn’t think he was ugly, but those stares still stung like salt to a wound.

With a sigh, he folded his wings, turned on the tap, and bent down to wash his face and get ready for yet another day of experiments.

Hopefully it would all be done soon.

Lance just wanted to sleep.

 

* * *

Keith watched carefully from the corner of his eye as Lance carefully spooned his breakfast into his mouth. He felt a twinge of worry looking at the bags under his eyes, the dullness in his hair. This wasn’t Lance. This was some sort of shell, a hollow version. Yet still, he could see determination in the boy’s eyes, a will so strong, Keith doubted anything could break it. Lance wanted to see the people cured, the disease gone. Keith knew that this was the only way that Lance saw his wings as good enough, (however Keith may disagree) and that the salve had worked wonders on getting his feathers to grow back.

A sharp kick to his shin from Pidge had Keith turning his gaze away from Lance, and onto the table around  him; the King was staring directly at him. His crown haunted Keith- the stark white feathers it was made of a reminder of what they were fighting against.

The hairs on Keith’s arm rose, as a shiver went down his spine; he had to fight against his wings to keep his feathers from fluffing up in defence. The King’s icy stare was bitter and chilling- it lacked any warmth, only cold and decisive.  Keith knew that part of the plan was to have the king believe that the Prince was “courting” or whatever with Lance- the only reason why they were allowed to be left alone together for so long every day. If the King started to think that  _ he  _ was wanting to court Lance, then it would throw everything in the garbage. Everything would be screwed. Which made his realization of his feelings towards Lance even more excruciating.

It had kept him up at night- he laid there, eyes open, looking at the ceiling even after Lance had fallen asleep.

Not that long ago he had thought Lance was the most annoying human being in the universe (literally) but now… well, he still thought he could be annoying sometimes, but like in an adorable I-want-to-punch-you-with-my-mouth sort of way.

It didn’t feel like a typical “crush,” though. Keith had had crushed before when he was younger- mostly on guys that he could never possibly have a chance with, but some of them turned out successful enough, well to Keith’s standards. The ones that had reciprocated feelings were always short- enough to enjoy a few weeks in their bed, and then never talk to them again. Keith never thought that he’d stay long with them, not when everything else in his life had vanished so quickly too. He never expected to be in an actual “relationship.”

But Lance was different, somehow; Keith didn’t just want to fuck him and be done (to be blunt). He wanted to cling and argue and talk and kiss. It was like Lance was a magnet somehow… When did Keith even become attracted to him?! This crush couldn’t have just come out of nowhere. It had to have started at one point.

Maybe it was when they first became Paladins. Sure, they fought and bickered and argued, but that was their _ thing.  _ He had never thought of Lance as unattractive…. His wings had always been beautiful-brown, and white. Maybe he had always liked Lance, but just masked it with perceived dislike because Lance had created that rivalry and it had secretly hurt his feelin-

Another kick to the shin brought Keith out of his whirlwind of thoughts, gasping lightly in pain.

“You’re scowling so hard the servants are scared to take your dishes away.” Pidge whispered quietly, facing forward whilst taking a dainty little bite out of her porridge-like breakfast.

Fuck. Resting-Scowl-Face had trumped him again. Forcing his eyebrows to unfollow themselves, Keith also loosened up his wings a bit, making them appear a bit more relaxed and open- when wings were tightly closed in on themselves, it reflected what the person was feeling; anxious, closed off, or deep in thought.

Looking up from his designated stare blankly at spot on the table, looking over towards Hunk, who gave him a small smile whilst trying to choke down the porridge. Keith remembered him saying earlier that it was something about the grains and seeds in the porridge that made it hard for him to eat- he didn’t like the texture.

Lance didn’t seem to be eating much either- Keith knew that his stomach was really sensitive now, because of the experiments. Fuck, was he pushing himself too far? It worried him, worried all of the team- Keith had seen the lingering glances, the worry lines forming between Shiro’s eyebrows, frown on Hunk’s face and the way Pidge’s wings drooped a little every time she saw Lance so exhausted. The team felt guilty, for having all this put on Lance alone- for being unable to do anything else.

Keith’s attention was drawn to the Prince as he finished his meal.

“My Blue Paladin, will you join me again, today? I do quite enjoy the time we spend together, and I believe you haven’t finished that wonderful battle tale you started last time we met.”  His black eyes twinkled, beak clicking. They were so stark against the brightly coloring of his feathers- a brilliant red and gold. Like fire. Dangerous.

Lance looked up from his meal, setting down his spoon. “I would love to. Anybody who knows me knows that I love to share my stories.” 

Oh yes. The boasting- the dramatic overlays. Keith knew quite well about Lance’s stories, but he had a hard time picturing Lance telling them now. 

The Prince’s beak clicked happily. “Shall we make our way, then?”

Lance nodded, standing up ready to head out, before the King’s voice stopped him- froze the whole team, really.

“Blue Paladin, now that your feathers have grown in so brilliantly, I have a request.” The King’s clicky voice was harsh against the silence that had fallen across the room. “You must have noted my crown here- white feathers are a sign of purity and grace in this kingdom. It would fill me with joy and honor if I could acquire just one feather from those beautiful wings of yours to add to it. As a sign of goodwill from Voltron.”

Immediately Keith’s ears were filled with pounding, his fists curling up, tails biting half-moons into the inside of his palms. Tension filled with the rest of the team, but they seemed to be keeping their emotions at bay, even though Keith could tell Allura would be furious later.

Lance’s face was unreadable as he replied, “it would be my honor, King. Your feather will be delivered later tonight, I’ll take care plucking one for you.” Still though, his wings were tucked in tight; Keith could see him pull them in tighter.

The Prince smiled. 

With a nod towards his team, Lance got up, starting to follow the Prince out, but Allura’s spluttered,

“Actually, Lance, before you go, I was hoping to have a quick,  _ private  _ team meeting. You know how these things are, it’s good to keep all caught up with each other.” She gave a sympathetic nod towards the Prince, “you must understand. We’ll only be twenty dobashes.”

The Prince, whilst looking a little annoyed and impatient agreed. Frankly, Keith didn’t give a shit how he felt. Not a single fuck; those had ran out a long, long time ago.

Lance, looking between his team, and the Prince, seemingly a little conflicted, simply nodded, then walked towards Allura. “Twenty minutes doesn’t sound so bad.”

 

* * *

Lance’s heart wouldn’t stop pounding, as he walked quietly with his team to Allura’s room- a private area that Pidge had looked over to make sure there were no recording devices, etc. A feather- the King wanted one of his feathers. Did he know what was happening? Was he trying to manipulate him somehow? Did he simply just want one of his feathers as some sort of power trip? 

All these thoughts whorled in his head as he walked through the door, absentmindedly following behind Hunk. 

The door shut behind them, and all of a sudden he was engulfed in warmth and soft, chocolate-brown feathers.  

“Lance, I’m so sorry this is happening!” Hunk exclaimed, squeezing him tight. “There’s so much pressure on you right now, and I feel so bad not being able to help you more, and now the King’s doing this, and-ugh- just let me hug you, dude. Flock time. No backouts, everyone in- Allura, you included. Keith you can’t say no this time.”

Lance let out a little breath, feeling some of the exhaustion leave him. Maybe some of it was because he wasn’t getting enough Flock time- bonding time with everyone else. He’d been so focused on getting the mission done, that he’d ignored everyone else. A little pang of guilt went through him, as he wrapped his arms around Hunk, ad tightened, feeling the warmth of everyone else joining in-even Keith.

They stayed like that for a bit, in silence, just enjoying the moment of peace and calamity that they got so sparsely.  

Shiro drew away first, sighing. He looked directly at Lance, worry lines still formed between his brows. “Are you sure you’re okay, Lance? We’ve all been noticing the strain that’s been put on you right now, and if you need to talk, we’re here to listen.” 

Everyone’s faces were so honest- so full of worry, it made guilt course through Lance’s veins. 

“I don’t mean to make you guys worry…” He mumbled, taking a small step back, wings snapping in tight.  

Keith turned sharply towards him, “we’re allowed to worry! It’s not your fault, but we care about you! This is obviously hard- for you, most of all.” He was blunt-much like when he lashed out, but Lance knew that right now, it was coming from a place of worry, not annoyance.

“I just… It’s my wings. I’m having a hard time-you…” Lance swallowed hard, words sticking in his throats. “They’re the same as before. Ugly. And sometimes you guys stare-I don’t blame you- and I just want this disease to be cured so I can leave and have a  _ break  _ but it’s like, if I even think about taking a break I feel guilty because people are  _ dying  _ every day and I’m here complaining because I’m a bit tired and my wings don’t have any color.”

The words came out of his mouth like vomit- the feelings he had kept in tumbling out (no matter how hard Keith tried to comfort him when they were in their room). 

Pidge’s face crumpled, two little sniffs escaping from her.  “I stare at you because I’m worried about you! Your wings are white, but I don’t give a shit about Earth’s stupid bias! You’re Lance! My teammate, and you’re pushing yourself _ so much  _ right now…. And I-I…”

The words didn’t leave her throat as she practically threw herself at Lance, cream wings wrapping around his torso as he buried her head in his chest.

“You’re part of our flock- everybody cares about you, so much Lance.” She sniffed. “You’re almost there. We’re so close, then we can just say fuck you and fuck off.” 

Allura nodded furiously, “we’re all part of Voltron. Even though Coran’s not here, he would agree too. We all care deeply for each other.” 

“If it’s getting to be too much let us know,” Keith chimed in, voice rough, a little cracked. 

Lance felt tears prick his eyes as he swallowed his spit. His team cared. He knew they cared, but this was… it was nice.

He just needed to grit down, and put in as much effort as he could- him and the Prince were close. Just one last push- no matter what it took. Even though his eyes itched with sleep and his joints screamed at him. His team didn’t deserve to worry like this.

“Thanks guys… I- I really appreciate it. I’m going to go to the Prince now and carry on with the experiments. I’m going to send the feather… everything’s going to be okay, I think. You guys are the best.”

 

* * *

  
Lance laid there on the table, panting hard, swallowing down his nausea. It was the hardest one yet. 

“You’re done, here my Blue Paladin; I’m going to start working right now- the harder we work, the faster the cure will come. We sure do make a good coupling- don’t you think we work well together? Like a perfectly oiled machine.” 

Lance nodded, scared that he’d throw up if he opened his mouth. 

“Well, yes. Now go get some rest; you did so great today, I want to see what you can do tomorrow too.” And with that the Prince left, walking out with the samples.

One foot on the floor, and then another- they were bare.

He wobbled to the door, taking it slow. His wings ached all the way to the bone- it felt as though he could hardly keep them lifted from dragging on the floor. His hand dragged against the wall of the hallway as Lance walked down it, vision spotting and blurry. 

His stomach lurched, and his legs buckled in, cheek slamming against the floor. The last thing Lance remembered was how nice the cool tile felt against his burning skin before blackness overtook him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey!!!! Another Chapter!!!! In a decent amount of time (wow isn't that a surprise hahahaha) 
> 
> Happy New Year! I hope you all have a great 2019 (: I'm excited for this year! 
> 
> So... some juicy drama.... Y'all know cliffhangers are my thing. If you don't, now you know. I know it's probably cheesy, but this fic is for my own enjoyment too, so I'm going to write what I want to write (of course I'll take constructive criticism, just understand that I know it's not nearly close to perfect. I don't even edit that much, I just write. It's a relaxer for me lol) 
> 
> What do you guys think of the prince and the king? Honestly, I swear I gave them names, but I feel like keeping them somewhat nameless with just "the Prince" or "the King" gives them a bit of eeriness? What do you guys think? 
> 
> Anyways thank you for reading and commenting!!!!


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